


Dictatious Loves Miss Janeth the Musical

by arcadia_trash



Category: Aladdin (1992), Trollhunters (Cartoon)
Genre: Blindness, Disney crossover, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Flirting, Married Life, Suggestive Themes, TAB MYSELF I MEANT STAB, Unrequited Love, i just realized that dicky is kinda yandere sometimes and now i want to tab myself, mermaid, mermaid au, sl;adkfsakj;
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2019-08-28
Packaged: 2019-09-05 11:43:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 35
Words: 45,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16809925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arcadia_trash/pseuds/arcadia_trash
Summary: This is basically just a collection of one-shots for my rarepair. Some of these were used for the Rarepair contest on tumblr. :) Decided to collect them here instead of just posting on my blog for easier reading.





	1. Unrequited Love

**Author's Note:**

> Summary: Dictatious finally garners up the courage to speak with Miss Janeth about his feelings for her and where they stand as a couple, yet things are not quite as they seem…
> 
> The theme for this one was "unrequited love", with the quote, "Should I smile because you are my friend, or cry because that's all we'll ever be?". 
> 
> Alcohol/Drunkenness warning, in case no one wants that!

“Through all my centuries of living, not one creature has managed to capture my attention so beguilingly as you have – and I being _blind_ , and you being _human_ , no less.”

Dictatious sighed melodramatically, having rehearsed this little speech to himself numerous times the previous day; only the ingestion of human alcohol gave him the bravery to commit to it. As bedeviling as it sounded to schedule a dreary breath, or to enunciate what word and when, the old troll’s words were, for once, sincere. Nothing could be gained from this moment, and if he could be honest with himself for once in his life, Dictatious knew that he was losing nothing, either. You could never lose what – or in this case, _whom_ – you never had to begin with.

Continuing, Dictatious spoke even more somberly than before. “Of course, not everything can or should be reciprocated. I certainly would never dream of forcing my affections upon you –” _Though I would snatch you up in a heartbeat, you are a stubborn woman, and Blinkous would **never** forgive me even if I could succeed_ “– and if I can have nothing else, I shall then gain the satisfaction and peace of knowing that you are happy nonetheless.”

Stone fingers, green and cold, clacked together as he tapped all four sets of them simultaneously. _No, stop it you blind fool!_ Dictatious nagged to himself. There would be no display of nervous ticks here, not even if he heartily gave up the deadly game of politics after that disaster with Gunmar. There would be no weakness shown, not ever, especially not in front of _her_. He pushed forward after straightening up and holding his hands behind his back.

“So it is with…a heavy heart…that I…must say…” Dictatious swallowed nervously. Now near the end of his speech, and he was already forgetting it out of near-terror. Well, as hopeless as his old brain and broken heart was, even the word ‘hopeless’ was not without ‘hope’. Standing as straight and tall as he could to keep his composure, his bowed his head humbly.

“Should I smile because you’re my friend, or cry because that’s all we’ll ever be?” Dictatious sighed in genuine sorrow. “You are a lovely woman, Miss Janeth – my dearest Lenora! – and it is a shame I could never explore further where our lives together could take us both. And…oh Great Gorkus, who am I fooling?! It isn’t _fair!_ ”

Down the hall, where the Thanksgiving party was going on strong with many pleasantries, Toby and Aaarrrgghh!!! watched as Dictatious continued to speak to the coat hanger, and eventually fall to his knees before it, begging for something or other in-between sobs. Two upper hands grabbed an edge of a tweed coat and cried into it. An empty mug of an unknown drink rolled away from him when his knees slammed onto the floor.

“Wingman, you didn’t let him into the spiked cider, did ya?” Toby whispered, slightly amused at the sight. His troll companion shrugged.

“Dictatious strange. Thanksgiving strange. People act funny.” Aaarrrgghh!!! rumbled.

“Did someone say _funny!_ ” came a slurred voice behind them. Toby turned and saw Miss Janeth stumble over and lean on the tall troll for support. She turned to the boy and continued, “I have a _gooood_ funny!”

Then, with a little, childish snicker, Miss Janeth said, “What did the pengiun say to the polar bear as they broke up?”

“Uh…” Toby said, eyeing over at Aaarrrgghh!!! who held some interest in the joke. “I dunno. What did he say?”

“ _It could never work. We’re **polar** opposites!_ Ahahaha!” Miss Janeth shrilly laughed, Aaarrrgghh!!! joining in with hearty chuckles of his own.

“I hear the Fates _mocking_ my anguish already!” Dictatious cried out, falling over pathetically to his side and onto the wooden floor with a loud thud. Miss Janeth laughed again and wobbled over to her not-Dictatious date elsewhere, eager to tell more terribly bad jokes and puns that would torment the blind troll throughout the night.


	2. Space

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Despite his childish jealously, Dictatious comes around to the idea that, sometimes, he isn’t the only reason that Lenora smiles – and that can be a good thing.
> 
> From the theme "Space"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it just me or am I the only person that calls Dictatious "Max"? His otherwise useless middle name is MAXIMUS and we went with "Dick" and "dicky?"??? nah son we humiliate the ex-gumm gumm with goober-worthy nicknames.
> 
> Also they are married here because there shall be no cohabitation on my Wholesome Catholic fanworks page.

A growl sent the long-haired kitten rushing away from their feet.

“Max, really now!” Lenora pouted. She grabbed the furball of a ragamuffin and placed the little thing into her lap, soothing her with scratches behind the ear. “She was only trying to make friends with you.”

“I _don’t_ make friends with _meals_.” Dictatious grumbled. The kitten’s scent was still strong on his trunk-like legs where she attempted to mark him as family. The sweetness that once carried in Lenora’s voice was long gone now. It was bittersweet really – the old troll, blind as he was, enjoyed hearing a smile in her tone, but he felt intense anger when he knew that the happiness was not his own doing.

This time, it was the damned cat. His dear Lenora brought the kitten home the day before, and already she was tearing apart the careful dynamic Dictatious had built between himself and his newly wedded wife. Neither talked about obtaining pets of any kind, and the woman knew well enough that he ate cats: so why in Deya’s grace did she bring one home?

“I suggest you get used to it, then. Titania isn’t going _anywhere_.” Lenora huffed. “Besides, I thought you would enjoy the company while I am away at the school. You always complain how much you miss me.”

“Yes, missing _you_ , my darling! Not that scruffy–!”

“Titania is _not_ scruffy.” Lenora sighed, getting up and holding her new pet in her arms. The old troll held down a growl in his throat when he sensed her leaving. “Now if you don’t mind, _Dictatious_ , I have papers to grade and I’d rather be in pleasant company!”

“But my darling!” Dictatious sprung up, almost tipping over the coffee table, and all four hands reaching out before him in an attempt to soothe her. He knew that when she used his formal name, it meant she was really upset: and that worried him.

“No. Just…give me some space. Please. You’ve been so overbearing lately, and over the silliest things. I need a break.” Lenora said, ending the conversation, and walking to the kitchen where the school work laid on the table.

That did it. Dictatious, with only a few bumps around the house, managed to find his way into his own study upstairs. There he pawed around for the phone he had connected on his desk and made a call.

As soon as Blinkous answered, his brother did not bother with any greetings and went straight to the point. Blinky could not help but notice the slightest hint of panic in his voice.

“Oh Blinkous, it’s awful! Lenora is replacing me already!”

Blinky sighed and set down the scroll he had been reading through. “Alright you old bat, what is it this time? The mailman sent her morning salutations? One of her colleagues bid her a good day?”

Only slightly miffed by his tone, Dictatious replied, “No! Even worse! She’s brought home an ugly little cat!”

“Don’t consume it, then, unless that was her intended purpose for the creature.” Blinky said as he checked his nails.

“She feeds me well enough on…other things.” Dictatious mumbled. He was not going to admit to his own brother that at his age, cat meat no longer sat well with his digestive system, and now relied solely on their recycling and other light waste. “No, it is a pet, and one she is cooing over like a freshborn whelp! She’s even given the damn thing a name!”

“So?”

“…So what?! It…it’s winning her over! My Lenora is being won over by a mangy kitten!”

“That’s the sole purpose of a pet, dear brother.” Blinky drawled. Dictatious could only give a small wail in defeat and sank into his cushioned armchair by the window.

“She sides with the cat over me! ME! Her own husband! I’ve done nothing but dote on her whims and pour love into her life!”

“Perhaps this is a new concept for you, but other aspects of Lenora’s life are allowed to make her happy.”

Dictatious sputtered. “That’s-That’s preposterous! Absolute idiocy, for you to so much as hint at this debacle being nothing more than petty envy!”

“Look, _Max_ ,” Blinky smirked when he heard Dictatious growl at the name only his wife called him by, “You are not the center of the universe, much less _Lenora’s_ universe, but you are a large part of it already. If you are as an adept spouse as you so claim to be, then what do you have to fear from a mere house cat?”

“…Well…the cat _is_ soft and furry…Humans seem to enjoy that more than stone.” Dictatious bemoaned. Blinky sighed.

“Then try to indulge in Lenora’s joy with the creature, for goodness sake. There are other things in her life besides you, and you should share that with her instead of shoving it away.”

The phone call ended soon after, as Blinky insisted that he give his own updates on life – Jim Lake Jr was improving with his mental adjustment to being half-troll. Claire was adapting well to her lessons on troll arcana and other magics with Merlin, and now there was a rumor of New Trollmarket gaining some new citizens from other tribes around the world.

In other words, Blinkous Galadrigal was thriving as a leader, a father figure, and as a friend. Dictatious secretly envied that, and would have dwelled on it longer, had he not a woman to woo back in his favor.

Sniffing out Lenora’s scent (Dictatious swore she smelled of dew-dropped flowers and cool breezes, much to her amusement), the troll found her outside; he heard faint scribbling and creaking, so most likely she had taken the work out in the cool autumn evening upon their porch swing.

Titania was there, of course. She gave a happy mew and purred like crazy, rubbing up against his legs. This time, Dictatious let her. He supposed that humans were not the only forgiving creatures that lived on the surface.

“Ready to apologize then?” Lenora spoke civilly, if firmly. Dictatious carefully picked up the kitten with his lower set of arms and moved to sit down next to her. Titania continued to purr and nuzzled happily into his lap.

“I understand that I have upset you.” he worded carefully, trying to sound just as civil as she.

“You attack and harass any person or thing that makes me happy. Lord forbid I enjoy something every now and then.” Lenora sniffed. Whether the sniffling was from the cold night falling upon them or her emotions causing it, Dictatious had no idea: but he knew he had to repair this fast. One of the worst sounds to ever hit his ears was the sound of an unhappy wife.

“Lenora, my dearest darling, you know for a fact that I love to make you happy!” he told her. Titania was snoring slightly now. “I just…I suppose I…feel…”

“Threatened by anyone or anything that makes me happy?” she smirked now. Dictatious froze.

“How…did you…?!”

Now it was Lenora’s turn to sound sheepish and lost her smirk. “I didn’t mean to listen in of course; but I had let your window open earlier today to air it out. I, _ahem_ , I overheard you speaking with your brother.”

“Oh.” was all he said. Then he felt a warm, little hand lay over one of his.

“Max dear, I…I _do_ love you. I always will. But you can’t throttle my love for life.” Lenora began. “Just take my students, for instance. Did you know that I am grading their papers on how mathematics is used in astronomy? And it wasn’t even my idea for the project! They all took the time outside of school to discover the stars and bring that passion to my own classroom. When I saw how my teaching inspired them, well…how could I not be in love with what they accomplished? Is it so wrong that I feel that way?”

Dictatious sighed. He was never a teacher – outside of tutoring Blinky as a whelp, of course – but he could appreciate how Lenora felt. Before he was thrown into the Darklands, Dictatious always received letters from trolls young and old about how invigorating his work was, how much his books helped others begin their own journeys of learning and study. In the past, it did nothing more than boost his ego; reflecting upon it now, Dictatious swore he felt humbled about it, rather than prideful.

And all because of this infernal fleshbag woman and her bizarre wiles. Oh well, whatever made her happy with him again, he was willing to give a try. Dictatious eventually hummed with a grin, leaning over to nuzzle her hair.

“It is never wrong to love, whomever or whatever the subject may be. So long as I am there with you when it happens.”

“You mean that?” she asked.

“Well, so long as you love me above all others. There’s a hierarchy to this, after all.” Dictatious demanded with a failed attempt to sound stern.

Lenora giggled, allowing her husband to fuss over her as he always insisted now that their little spat resolved. It was hard to call it a bad day, when it ended with a kitten in her dear one’s lap, a loving hand in hers, and the stars glistening above them on a crisp, calm night.

Perhaps that little bit of space was all they needed to mend things after all.


	3. That weird scene from Aladdin when Jafar kisses a minor but now its with legal adults

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Miss Janeth is part of the Trollhunting group, and heads into the Darklands with genie Angor Rot at her side to help find and save Jim. Unfortunately, she and Angor are captured; not only does Dictatious use Angor Rot to overthrow Gunmar, but Miss Janeth finds herself the source of obsessive affection from the advisor-turned-sorcerer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The theme for this was essentially a crossover AU. I don't ship Jafar and Jasmine (EW) but the dynamic in that scene was too perfect to miss for the contest! Threw in genie!Angor Rot because why not?
> 
> Also this is what the yandere tag was warning about. It's not inappropriate but that obsessiveness is there and I hate myself, thanks!!!

Lenora Janeth was a proud woman who took no shit, but she gave plenty of it now that she found herself in the Darklands. Not only that, but Dictatious Maximus Galadrigal – a troll who was supposed to be dead – was alive and, well, and _hitting_ on her.

At first it had not been so bad. After her capture, she learned from Dictatious himself that he had fallen into the Darklands by accident, and climbed up the ranks in Gunmar’s court to win his favor. Knowing that there was a chance to sway him back to the light after years of survival and brainwashing, Lenora took the challenge of warming up to him, and having him trust her. She learned to admire the troll for his incredible intellect, and they both discovered a mutual love for literature and learning.

He had a massive ego, sure, but Lenora used her own intelligence to pick away at it until she found the heart of who Dictatious truly was. If she were being honest with herself, Lenora would have admitted that she grew rather fond of Dictatious. He was witty, confident, and endearing, if in his own bizarre way. And in turn, the two found themselves in a mutual bond of admiration and hope for the future.

Sadly, such a plan backfired just as Lenora made progress. When Dictatious discovered her wearing the Inferna Copula, the little progress that Lenora made to get him to the “good guy’s side” vanished. With the snap of a finger, Dictatious gained control over Angor Rot; he wished to became a powerful sorcerer, and then wished to displace Gunmar from his throne; and now, he controlled the Gumm Gumm armies, with plans to capture the elusive Trollhunter by holding Lenora captive.

And that’s where the “fun” began.

“It pains me to see you reduced to this, Lenora.” Dictatious gave with a pretend sigh. He played with an apple, tossing it lightly in his palm, teasing the woman whom he knew to be hungry from days lost in the bleak otherwordly landscape. 

The teacher frowned, and shifted uncomfortably in her chained hands as well as the ridiculous harem girl outfit he conjured for her to wear. Dictatious hardly cared about her comfort, and so he continued.

“A beautiful, enticing flower such as yourself should be on the arm of the most powerful being in the world.” Dictatious said as he waved a finger, conjuring something else for Lenora to wear – a crystal crown. “What do you say, my dear? Why, with you as my queen –”

Lenora’s face grew into a snarl, and grabbing his cup of grog, threw the contents into his face. She shouted, “Never! You think I would betray Jim and the world for _you?!_ ”

Dictatious growled, raising a hand to slap her, as the woman fell backwards from the sudden jerk on her chains. But then, he paused. A wicked grin grew on his face, one that made Lenora’s stomach churn. A throaty chuckled left his lips as he contemplated how much she was at his mercy.

“Genie,” Dictatious said to Angor Rot, who had been watching helplessly in the background, “I have decided to make my final wish.”

The troll sorcerer loomed over Lenora now, and she scooted backwards until she hit a cold, crystal wall. All six of his eyes glowed with ominous magic.

“I wish for Lenora Janeth to fall _desperately_ in love with me.”

Angor Rot clenched and unclenched his fists in silent fury. The woman had been the one to spare his life from both Morgana and the wrath of Trollmarket when she managed to obtain his Inferna Copula; though he would never admit it, he considered her a friend. At the least, he owed her his freedom from the Pale Lady and a second chance at life, and it physically hurt at how useless he was in this moment, watching the mad old troll gain a tighter grip on someone he felt protective over.

Still, Angor had to stall for whatever time they did have. It was the least he could do.

“Master,” Angor said in an unnaturally even tone, crossing his arms now, “Perhaps you were too busy taking over the Gumm Gumm armies to have listened, but one of the things I am unable to do as genie is to force love onto other living beings.”

“Don’t you talk back to me, you cursed twig of a failed warrior!” Dictatious spat, twirling on his feet to grab Angor by his horn and bring his face down to his. As he continued his drabble of frustration at the genie’s incompetence, Lenora glanced upwards, and noticed someone climbing down from the crystal ceiling above. A certain someone with red and black armor and dark hair.

Heart dropping, Jim motioned for her to keep quiet. Well, if her student was going to keep safe, then she would have to give it her all for the performance of a lifetime. Lenora stood up, shook out her loose, curly hair, and put on the crown Dictatious had tried to gift her earlier.

Breathe in, breathe out.

Ready, set, action.

“Dictatious, I never realized how _incredibly_ handsome you are!” she declared in a sultry voice, a hand on her hip as another played with a stray curl in her hair. Angor Rot’s eyes widened in shock, his mouth agape, which was promptly shut by a rough shove from Dictatious. That devilish smile returned on the sorcerer.

“That’s better.” he purred. “Now, pussycat, tell me more about…myself.”

Lenora forced herself to act coy; she could have sworn that from the corner of her eye she saw Blinky and AAARRRGGHH!!! as well, and needed to keep all six of those greedy eyes on her.

“You’re tall…well dressed…”

Dictatious chuckled at the praise, adjusting his cape and nuzzling his nose into her neck. Lenora used the opportunity to glance over at the others. Jim and AAARRRGGHH!!! were helping with Angor Rot, but Blinky was staring with disgust at the scene unfolding. He held a flare in his hand, and Lenora knew she had the support needed to continue her little trick.

“…And your hair is so…twisted.” Lenora teased, curling some of his hair in her finger and using it to motion the others closer, to make their move.

“And the fleshbag?” Dictatious asked, looking into her face again. All four hands roamed her waist and back, causing her to shiver from the touch of cold, smooth stone on warm, bare skin. Lenora had to bite back the urge to vomit when she answered.

“What fleshbag?”

There was a clanking noise, from where AAARRRGGHH!!! managed to break Angor’s chains. This was enough to startle Dictatious, who turned to see what the matter was. In desperation, Lenora grabbed his ear, pulled his face in again, and gave him the best kiss she could to someone with a wide mouth and jutting tusks.

Poor Blinky – if he thought her false flirting was gross, then he was likely gagging now. Dictatious hummed with satisfaction, enjoying what was, to him, an exotic and exciting form of affection. Eventually the kiss broke, and with blurry, lovesick eyes, Dictatious looked into her own. Lenora felt so terrible, wishing that this scene unfolded in different circumstances. As it was, Dictatious was a threat, and her duty to protect Jim, their friends, and the world came first.

“Rule number three.” Lenora cooed, playfully tapping his nose. Dictatious rose his brows in confusion, before he felt her kick his gronk nuks. He howled and stepped away, turning to find Blinky just before him.

“Take this, you perverted old goat!” Blinky snarled, using the flare to swipe at his face with a flash of bright light. Again Dictatious yelled out, clawing at his face in pain as he fell onto the floor.

“My eyes! My six eyes!”

“Hurry, we gotta leave before the bridge closes off!” Jim ushered, breaking Lenora’s chains with the Eclipse blade and helping her out with the others. “You alright, Miss Janeth?”

Lenora bit her lip and looked back at Dictatious. They were further away now, and a few guards approached him for help. They rounded a corner and the visage of him disappeared.

“Just wishing that I did not fail.” she said with some sadness. “But we shan’t delay any further! Where is the bridge?”

Further behind, Dictatious swore up and down in a fury, gathering what soldiers he could to follow the trollhunting team back to the surface. Even if he had to burn down every human city and village, even if he lost every last one of his warriors to do so – he was going to capture his queen.

With a pained smirk, and burning, dimmed eyes, Dictatious used his newfound magic to summon a trail leading back to Killahead Bridge.

This was going to be a wonderful hunt.


	4. Kiss The Troll

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Dictatious is a serious flirt but his timing is questionable.

"You’re softer than fresh velvet, smoother than silk." 

“Max.”

"You smell of flowers and meadows, fresh in the morning dawn, the wind bristling over their perfumed petals!" 

“ _Max._ ” 

“Have I mentioned how lovely your hair is shining, today?”

“Max! What are you doing here?” 

"I'm here for my daily fix of hugs and kisses." 

“Not in the middle of school! How did you get past the Sun anyway?!”

Lenora was hurriedly erasing her whiteboard, the marker squeaking on the surface as she wrote out beginning problems for her next class. Her lunch break was short as is; Dictatious bursting in announcing his love for her and declaring her beauty to passing students in the hall certainly was not helping.

“If you must know, dearest, I covered myself in the behemoth of a bedspread your mother gifted to me for our anniversary, and walked here. It’s not like I need to see anyway.”

Dictatious then waddled over to her side, wrapping one arm around her back. “Don’t I deserve an award for my valiant efforts to reach my beloved?”

“I should slap you for taking such a dangerous risk!” Lenora huffed, twirling to face him and shaking a marker in his face. His mouth drooped with his ears in disappointment.

“But I missed you, my love. You can’t possibly fault me for that?”

Lenora sighed and put the cap back on her marker. “Max, you know that I love you. Most of all, for your romanticism and desperate efforts to appease me.”

“They are not desperate!”

“Risking your life for a kiss is desperate, honey.” Lenora corrected. “I only berate you because I love you. And if you love me, than you wouldn’t pull childish and deadly stunts such as this!”

Dictatious paused for a moment, all four hands tapping his fingers together, before he said, “So no kisses?”

“Max!”

“You might as well if I am here!” he said, affronted. “No matter then; I shall obtain them myself!”

And that was how Toby and the others wandered to their math class, finding their teacher being chased about the room by a laughing, old troll. Darci took a picture of the scene from behind the door window, as her boyfriend groaned. 

“Don’t photograph it, just seeing it makes me wanna barf!”

“If it means less time spent doing those dumb problems, then I’m all for it.” she said with a wink. At that, Toby brightened up, and he and the other students quietly decided to hang outside the door until the bell rang.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based on a few prompts from tumblr! I combined three of them: "You're really soft." "You smell nice." "I'm here for my daily fix of hugs and kisses." I've found that it's easiest to write for this couple with prompts, so likely future chapters will be prompt-driven as well. Idk if they will keep coherent to whatever canon I am making of them in this collection but that won't stop me from trying! I already have a fair number of prompts waiting to be used. :)


	5. Mermaid Mystery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dictatious and Lenora may be argumentative and stressed, but they always manage to find solace in one another regardless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *chanting before a ceremonial fire* mermaid prompt, merMAID PROMPT, M E R M A I D P R O M P T!!!!

“Well don’t just stand there poking me! Do something!” Lenora demanded with panic. Subconsciously, her new sparking tail flipped down into the bath water and splashed a bit on her husband.

Dictatious grumbled a little as he wiped it off, his eyes squinting in vain to get a better look at the shining blob he suspected was the scales of his wife-turned-fish-person. “Firstly, my dearest, I have no idea how you even came about in this condition. Throwing a fit certainly is not helping me help you!”

“I just want my legs back! I can’t go to work like this, the kids have their midterms tomorrow!”

She watched carefully as Dictatious continued to grumble under his breath, pacing a little by her side.

“Are you certain drying off does not rid you of the tail?”

“Most certainly. It only made it itchy.”

“And you have not been near the ocean in the past fortnight?”

“How could I have had time to go to the beach with how busy I’ve been?!”

A cold rock hand patted out gently, quickly finding the fleshy arm of Lenora. “I only ask to be certain of what might have happened to you. Do you not trust your own spouse?”

Lenora blushed, turning her face away though she knew Dictatious could not see it. Titania meowed from the floor and stood on her back paws to lick at the water, causing little ripples to cascade across her tail and causing it to shimmer even more greatly.

“Of course I do.”

“Then...there may be hope just yet.” Dictatious answered, the hand now reaching about her shoulder as he kneeled and brought her closer to him. “I’ll need the chubby boy and the Krubera to send for help from the Trollhunter, but this isn’t permanent.”

There was a sigh, before he heard a giggle. He frowned. “What’s so funny? I had no intentions to marry any merfolk you know!”

“It’s just, when I was a little girl, I once dreamed of becoming a mermaid.” Lenora explained. A wet finger came up to tap his nose. “And don’t act like I couldn’t woo you to my side regardless. Don’t mermaids seduce men with their singing anyway?”

“You’re thinking of sirens, my dearest.”

“Oh hush up and kiss me. I’ve had a hard enough day as is!”

Dictatious chuckled in a mischievous tone as he bumped foreheads with his wife, and let her place a kiss on his lower nose. He leaned in obnoxiously and pushed his face towards hers to nuzzle whatever part of her he could find.

“What, just one little kiss? Is this the great siren you thought you could be? I am disappointed, my love!” he said in a fake pout. Lenora giggled and even cackled a little as he pushed his way into the tub, tossing aside his trousers and settling in behind her. “I’m afraid I can’t leave until the satisfactory amount of kisses desired is given to me. I absolutely demand it!”

Lenora grunted a little as she navigated herself well enough to face him in his lap. The tail plopped and flopped enough water to send Titania scurrying to the drier hallway. Dictatious hummed happily as she began to pepper his cheeks with her lips. 

Perhaps calling Blinkous could wait.


	6. Oops I Fell In Love With A Fleshbag

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Miss Janeth rebuffs Dictatious's attempts to compliment her, he begins a cat and mouse game to try and win her over -- to soothe his bruised ego, of course. No icky feelings for this human at all, no sir!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> aka how two big dorks fell in love against their will. they are Not Nice about it. Not a prompt this time but I figured they needed an Origin Story.

Going about to seduce a human woman was more work than Dictatious anticipated. 

Prone to flirting -- and being one of two trolls in town -- he found himself flattering and complimenting most human women in his company, and enjoying their giggles and responses in turn. It was easier to do, now that he did not have to look at their bizarre fleshy bodies, and it worked out well enough; Dictatious was well liked by most, and he gained positive, if fleeting, attention. Nana was immune to his charm, but for the better. He preferred her company as a fellow fan of their favorite TV shows, rather than a romantic interest.

In fact, Dictatious had no interest in romance at all. Old, broken, and tired, he decided to retire with the Domzalskis and enjoy the simple pleasures of domestic life with the occasional night on the town to meet new faces. 

Until he met Miss Lenora Janeth. 

"You have quite the voice, my dear! It melts the heart and makes a man soar for its beauty! No wonder you wish to recite the classics." Dictatious told her at an annual Independence Day cookout. As usual, Nana had took him along and found himself meandering with the locals to put in a good name for himself. Well, a good name for all except the mathematics teacher.

Miss Janeth scoffed and replied, "I don't recite the classics for mere men."

Dictatious visibly fumbled at the sudden remark. An ear twitched as he heard the rustling of grass as the woman walked away. Growling quietly to himself, Dictatious pouted and tapped around his walking stick to find another human to bother. Yet, he found himself distinctly recalling her soft scent, of dewy meadows and cool breezes -- a perfect image to dwell on during the sweltering summer heat. They met again shortly after. Nana's grandson, Toby, was attending a local gaming competition at the comic book store, and again he was dragged to the event. The noises of the electronic devices bothered his sensitive hearing, so Dictatious roamed the aisles elsewhere to feel the slick covers of the so-called "comics". 

Just as he felt his hand reached a toy aisle where figurines were sold, Dictatious's nose twitched at the smell of dew and wind. His blinded eyes widened. 

"You again?" he said bluntly and rather loudly. Miss Janeth -- who had been innocently looking over a graphic novel retelling of A Midsummer's Night Dream -- jolted in the lonely aisle and snapped to his attention. She frowned, something Dictatious heard in her voice as she spoke. 

"I could say the same about you."

"I'd rather you didn't." Dictatious said with offense, and without thinking. His cheeks puffed sheepishly the moment those words left his mouth. "I was...well, when a troll shares positive affirmations to a stranger, we prefer that the remarks are appreciated. Sometimes reciprocated."

There was a snort and a snap of a book sharply closing. "I don't owe you flattery, Mr. Galadrigal."

He smirked. "So you do know my name."

After a split second of spluttering, Miss Janeth retorted, "O-Of course I do! I am Mr. Domzalski's teacher! It is my job to know with whom my students associate. Now, if you will excuse me!"

Dictatious stepped to the side with a mock bow, and chuckled to himself when he smelt her nervousness. He got the rise out of her that he enjoyed, and found he rather liked the attention, even if different from what he normally received. 

And so the game began. Whether bumping into her by accident or by choice, the ex-Gumm Gumm would sniff her out in an instant in any gathering -- that beguiling scent! -- hobble over to her, and compliment her relentlessly.

_"I heard your rendition of "The Lady of Shallot" at the local cafe just last night! Your inflections were impeccable, darling."_

_"Is that laughter I hear? I could have sworn they were bells!"_

_"No doubt the children hear your cheery voice in the wee hours of morning and are spellbound to learn from you!_

"Fine! I give up!" Miss Janeth exclaimed at the parent-teacher conference. Hosted in the noisy, overcrowded gym, a few heads turned but otherwise her shout was drowned out by the buzz of conversation. She took in a few deep breaths, finally noticing that Dictatious sat there, quiet and confused.

"I beg your pardon?"

"For the past two months you have incessantly followed me around town and hound me with your equally incessant flattery!" she said, just as firm though not as loud. Toby's file was pushed aside for Nana to look over later. "So what is it that you want? Flattery in turn, was it? Will that get you off my back?"

Dictatious paused again as a sinking feeling hit his chest. "I...I suppose I did say that."

Miss Janeth grumbled something under her breath as she wiped off her glasses. They were put back on, and she faced him again. The world around them almost seemed to drown out as the woman recited her on-the-spot kindness.

"Mr. Galadrigal, despite your initially _bothersome_ nature, I...I have found you to be clever and energetic, with a desire to be a part of this community in ways that even long-time citizens rarely show. I admire your tenacity and wit, and only wish that my attention, to you, was something other than a prize to gain."

She sighed before wrapping up her little speech. "I'm glad that you care so much about making friends with all of us in Arcadia, and do not wish for you to lose that friendship. May you stay here for a very long time, Mr. Galadrigal."

"Oh...well...thank you. Thank you very much." Dictatious said, feeling empty now. He carefully stood up, the drone of voices around him suddenly coming to life again. He felt like a child escaping the serenity of the fae realm and rushing back into the real world, only he did not wish to escape at all. Even after he stood up and pushed back the chair, he did not move for a moment, almost opening his mouth to say something; he must have thought the better of it, for he snapped it shut, and then hurried away. Miss Janeth watched him leave as her shoulders sagged. 

While Miss Janeth would return to her home that night, contemplating her feelings on the matter, Dictatious had his mind all made up, and made a dramatic plea to Aaarrrgghh!!!. 

"Everything is terrible! I'm madly in love with a fleshbag!"

"We know." the Krubera said simply and without reservation as he gnawed on a used chicken roast pan. Dictatious tripped over his tongue before he could continue.

"What do you mean 'we'! And 'know'! Who else is in on this?!"

"Wingman, Nana, Chompsky too." Aaarrrgghh!!! explained. He paused before adding. "Stricklander too, and Bah-boo-rah." Dictatious whined in embarressment as his companion finished his snack with a loud burp. The Krubera was hardly phased. "Teacher lady good for you. Keep you humble."

Dictatious sniffed his nose in offense, making the other troll laugh.

"It true. Should take her on a date. Give her flowers. That what Wingman do."

It was fair enough advice, considering Dictatious knew very little of how human courtship worked, outside of his television shows. And even then, he found himself binge watching with Nana less and less over the months. Begrudgingly, he accepted the help of both Aaarrrgghh!!! and Toby, as he was given a crash course on dating women and dressed up for his first attempt. It was the day of a PTA meeting, and Miss Janeth, as always, would be there to help moderate. Not quite the politics he was used to, but Dictatious felt he could fit into the crowd as well as he could, being a troll.

"You gotta be smooth, you know? Casual, but interesting." Toby said, straightening the blazing orange tie around Dictatious's neck. "And let her know that you find _her_ interesting."

"Let lady talk, listen to her." Aaarrrgghh!!! added helpfully. Dictatious sighed, itching at the skin under the bizarre human accessory. He felt a stiff jacket get thrown over his shoulder, his arms being pulled through by the boy on either side of him. 

"This all seems rather...silly. I'd rather just tell her my intentions."

"That's what trolls do! You wanna act like a troll to Miss Janeth?"

"I _am_ a troll, fleshbag."

"Yeah but Miss Janeth _isn't_ a troll, she's a 'fleshbag'."

Dictatious snarled. "Don't remind me."

"Look, do you like her or not?"

That shut him up, and the three soon found themselves at the evening PTA meeting. They arrived early enough where a few were meandering in, but otherwise was not yet crowded. Dictatious sniffed out Miss Janeth himself, Toby and Aaarrrgghh!!! watching from the outside windows.

The scent of flower petals was faint, but Dictatious found her among a cloud of sugary sweets and salty crackers. As he drew closer to the table, he heard something sour-smelling being poured into a cup. 

"Ahem...good evening, Miss Janeth."

The woman set down another paper cup of lemonade and looked up. She half-snorted at the sight of a greying-green troll decked out in a near-fluorescent orange tie and patchwork-looking suit; still, the old grump managed to leave her well enough alone after her rather charged outburst the other day, so Miss Janeth minded her manners and fought the growing grin on her face.

"Good evening, Mr. Galadrigal. I didn't think you would continue attending school functions."

"Er, yes, I would, but I must admit it is not because of the Domzalski boy." Dictatious then hurriedly added, "Though I do not wish to bother you more than necessary! I merely...well...I heard you enjoy the theater, and Mrs. Domzalski is currently unable to attend one with me tonight. If it...isn't too much trouble...you could...could...and maybe we might...talk...on things..."

Miss Janeth watched in amusement as Dictatious tried and failed to steady his voice; she had a feeling he would be blushing, if trolls could.

"Why, Mr. Galadrigal! Are you asking me to abandon my post here?"

Instantly, he half-growled in embarrassment. "You dare imply that I would...to a lady!...Why I...I should...!"

"I would love to go." Miss Janeth interrupted him, stepping forward to lay a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. "All I do is play tea lady at these things anyway. But _you_ sound like a man of adventure!"

Dictatious tripped over his words again until he cleared his throat, threw on his trademarked smug grin (which Miss Janeth was privy to now as a mask), and offered his hand. She took it and he felt his chest constrict and expand all at once from the contact. He allowed her to lead him outdoors and he gave the verbal directions to where they were headed. It was a pleasant walk. Just as they advised to him, Dictatious let Miss Janeth talk on and on about what was on her mind, and to his amusement, much of it was on him. He also shared a few tales of his own about his old life, even before Killahead Bridge -- silly things he did as a boy, things that made Miss Janeth laugh in ways that made his stomach churn funny. As they drew close to the community play house, Dictatious looked foolish again and his easy-going chatter ceased; a hand or three frantically touched about his jacket. Miss Janeth called him out on it in a heartbeat, and for once he did not argue with her.

"Is it too late to say that I seem to have left the tickets at home?" Dictatious admitted quietly. Miss Janeth smiled wildly again, realizing the opportunity for better adventures.

"That just gives us the chance to sneak in and watch from the rafters." she said with a giggle. Dictatious visibly relaxed, laughed darkly even at the woman's "darker" side, and the two snuck into the theater's backway, oblivious to the troll and high school boy fist bumping over their success just down the street.


	7. Nightmare Schmightmare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dictatious realizes that Lenora worries more for and about him than he realizes, and gives her the assurance needed to trust that he'll be safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> basically just comfort fluff! The prompt was “I had a nightmare about you and I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

Living in the Darklands for eight or so centuries retrained Dictatious’s body to not need a Heartstone nor hibernation to survive. He was hardened by the harsh landscape -- even with his high position as advisor -- and it showed in how much he spoiled himself with soft, human luxuries. So what if he survived such harshness? He was retired, and he'd be damned before giving that up.

The bed he created for he and Lenora was larger than the typical king size, and doused with throw pillows and several comforters: all of it topped off with an opaque netting that hid away the bed itself. Lenora once likened it to a nest, and Dictatious did not disagree; that was the point, after all. Snuggling up under layers of sheets and cushions on an expanse of mattress was exactly what the old troll wanted, and he enjoyed it happily as a little get away with his wife. 

Well, so long as that wife was not prodding him awake, as she did now.

“Max? Max, dear?”

Dictatious grumbled under the blanket he hid within, a lazy trunk of a foot poking out as he turned away from her. Lenora rolled her eyes and lightly tickled it until he woke up.

“Ah! Oh!” Dictatious chortled, in a vain attempt to hide his chuckling. Out of his hiding spot now, he sat up and his eyes roamed everywhere in the dark hideaway that was their bed. “By Gorgus woman, what is it?”

Wrapping herself up in her own blanket, Lenora answered, “I had a nightmare about you, and I just wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

“Hm?” Dictatious hummed. It was...not what he expected. Or hoped for, knowing their more steamy late night shenanigans. Lenora laid against the mountain of pillows beside her and looked over him.

“I saw you, in that place you came from. The Darklands.”

Dictatious nodded for her to continue. His mouth became a thin line and Lenora hesitated to continue.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bring it up. It’s just…”

“It upset you. Tell me.” he cooed gently, getting out of his sheets to hold the blanket burrito that was his wife. He purred at its comfort and warmth, gently urging her to continue.

“I’m right here, you know. Breathing and alive. Formerly asleep.” Dictatious teased. Lenora giggled quietly. 

“Oh I know. But it was so real...and so cold. I could almost taste the air. And I saw you there, scared and alone. Whenever I tried to open my mouth, it was like I couldn’t speak.” she pulled her head out of the blanket to reach up and trace the markings on his face. “You were in danger and I was useless.”

Leaning back into the pillows now, Dictatious laid her on his chest and ran his fingers through her hair. The other three hands held her close.

“I won’t deny it was a hellish time in my life.” he eventually told her. “But there is no portal there now, and I am here, in bed, with my darling Lenora.”

A semi-silence fell upon the two, though neither fell back asleep. Dictatious was content either way, enjoying the sound of song birds as the dawn approached just outside of his convoluted nest-bed hybrid. He jolted out of his weary haze when Lenora chuckled against him.

“I almost forgot. You were wearing an old timey swimsuit in the dream. I think I know what I’m getting for our beach vacation.”

“Trolls do not swim, they sink!”

“Oh but we could get you a floaty, and the suit would make you so handsome. You may not see but I can, and I would like for you to look snazzy!”

The nightmare was forgotten, and a sillier one was begun; not that Dictatious could complain despite his protests.


	8. My Big Fat Troll Wedding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Turns out a set of broken-up vows can make for a stronger marriage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The prompt was "we got into a fight because we’re super stressed but i found a draft of your vows lying around the house". It's slightly different here but this was the main inspiration for this hurt/comfort piece. Also is it just me or would Ophelia and Miss Janeth be like, besties?

“You take that back!” Dictatious snarled, and while he missed her face by a few inches, a finger wagged pointedly regardless.

“Why should I? You’ve been acting like a baby!” Lenora snapped back. “Who’s been planning this wedding since your proposal? I have! Who’s gone out of her way to place the orders for everything? Me! And do you even comprehend how hard it was to convince my own parents to even attend?!”

Dictatious chuffed and turned away from her, crossing his arms and saying nothing.

“And for what? For you to drag your feet and act like nothing I do means anything? Nothing about this wedding makes you happy!”

Lenora paused. She then said with spite and fear, “Do _I_ even make you happy?”

Other than shaking, Dictatious showed no reaction to what she said, and instead walked heavily out of the little back room of the chapel. The door was flung open as several odds and ends of the storage space was knocked over in his rush. Lenora sniffed and felt her throat clench up.

So the rehearsal and dinner was a bust. Ophelia and Lenora's mother, Edith, found her crying in a corner, slumped against a stack of file boxes and looking a mess in her little black dress; they had rushed over the moment they saw Dictatious storm out into the cool night.

"Speak sweetie, what's wrong?" Ophelia soothed by taking one of her hands. Edith's mouth set itself into a firm line in obvious disapproval. 

"Is this how he treats you? He's as cold as the stone he's made of."

Lenora hiccuped as she accidentally smeared her eye liner with a hanky. 

"H-he's never treated m-me this w-way." she insisted. "Not until a-after..."

That just set her off again, and Ophelia brought her in for a hug as Edith stormed away to tell off Blinky, the only relative of the troll who hurt her precious and only daughter. Knowing she was stirring up even more drama, Lenora cried even harder and bemoaned everything about her existence. 

"Hey there, just let it out, let it all out. Javier is good at keeping peace, he won't let your old lady embarrass you. I promise." 

She still hiccuped but did simmer down a little at her friend's assurances. "At least one of u-us has a w-wonderful husband..."

Ophelia sighed and hugged her in tighter, handing her a tissue when her hanky got soaked with tears, mascara, and snot. "It could be wedding jitters. Even you've been having them. Have you tried to talk to Dictatious about it?"

"He doesn't like talking. Not anymore." 

That exhausted, sad tone broke the councilwoman's heart. "Then maybe he needs another way to speak with you. I have my therapist on speed dial, if you want to--"

"I just...I need to be alone. For now." Lenora said suddenly, wiping away the last of her tears. Ophelia sat back as Lenora reached for her purse to fix up her face.

"Are you sure? Everything is so high strung at the moment, maybe you should be with someone."

Lenora shook her head, snapping her powder clutch shut and reaching for her eyeliner. Her eyes were red and bleary but over all, had the look of dead set determination. "I'm certain. I know what I need to do, for my sake if no one else's."

Her exit was much more quiet and secret than that of her soon-to-be ex-fiance. Taking the back door to the church parking lot, Lenora slipped into the darkness to march towards Dictatious's temporary stay at the local motel.

The door to his room stood slightly ajar -- just a hair-thin open -- with the number rusted and loose on the door. It occurred to Lenora that Dictatious never did take her to this abode before; she couldn't blame him. Her knuckles didn't get the change to rap on the doorframe when she heard faint, ragged breathing and a slam of a door from the inside. Immediately, if quietly, Lenora creeped into the motel room. It was a tad dingy yet carefully put together, though the bedside table was absolutely littered with stray and crumpled pieces of paper. The bathroom was shut away, and no doubt served as Dictatious's respite at the moment. 

"Now is not the time to get soft." Lenora muttered under her breath. She walked over to the little writing station anyway, surprised that he would try his hand at writing; for so long he bemoaned his blindness and its limitations, something Lenora always countered with practical solutions, but he especially hated that he could not write traditionally anymore. 

The writing on the papers were less than stellar looking, the lines slanted and the lettering just a little bit off, but everything was decipherable enough. Lenora read the mess with a critical eye.

_With this ring I vow to give you a life (already has one)_

__

__

vow to:

 _-Love forever, too cliche?_  
-guard and love you ?  
-give you the world above and below

By now Lenora softened enough to put a hand to her chest in admiration. She put the list down to search for other vows; there were many, but even many more receipts and to do lists littered among them. Her eyes widened and she flushed, realizing that she had unintentionally messed with Dictatious's delicate organizational system. How he planned to read anything was beyond her but Lenora knew that he had been doing more than he let on.

But why hide it? What was he afraid of? Before Lenora could question it further, Dictatious finally left his bathroom morosely. She froze in front of the table and watched him carefully; he made no mention of her presence until he sat on the bed and sighed, suddenly catching a whiff of her scent. His ears perked and he jumped back up.

"What are you doing here?! Leave at once!" 

"I most certainly will not!" Lenora countered, stepping forward. "You've been treating me so terribly, and now you're hiding things from me? What are these?"

Receipts were waved in his face, which he snatched away from her grip. "That is none of your concern!"

"None of my concern?! We're getting married! Tomorrow! We... _were_ supposed to get married."

Dictatious's whole demeanor dropped, and so did Lenora's heart. He shuffled forward and grabbed her arms in desperation.

"No, you don't mean that! Please tell me you don't!"

"I mean it if you don't come clean. _Now._ " she demanded, more sternly than she felt as tears welled up again. His hands loosened on her though he did not back away. "Why have you been so horrible to me? What is with all these secrets? Just talk to me, damn it. What's wrong?"

Dictatious took a deep breath and fidgeted. He sat down onto the bed, where he motioned her to follow him. Lenora did so, and let him speak.

"For all those centuries researching, cultivating my literary collection, and even playing advisor to both Trollhunters and Gumm Gumms alike...I've become nothing."

Lenora blinked in surprise, but did not interrupt Dictatious as he continued.

"Sometimes I wonder if you know who you're shacking up with." he said with bitterness. "I never a fortune, but I had a modest enough living, and a reputation that rivaled the best of scholars around the underworld. But now, I'm nothing more than a traitor, with nothing to my name aside from dishonor and well-earned blindness. I can't even give you the change out of my pocket. It's all I've got to send me to the wedding tomorrow, by bus."

The receipt crinkled as Dictatious fussed with it.

"Whatever little money I tried to earn in Arcadia was minimal, and only just enough to properly help you in this wedding. I...I do want you to be happy. I did not intend to--"

"You were helping with the wedding? How?"

Dictatious cleared his throat before continuing sheepishly. "I offered your mother and father help with the monetary arrangements. It's no secret that they did not approve of me -- it felt like a good way to earn their favor. I, _ahem,_ I worked on a part time column in the local paper."

There was a pause before Lenora gasped. " _You're_ Miss-Opinion?!"

"Not so much a "Miss", obviously." Dictatious grumbled. "But their usual writer had a baby, and they needed a temporary replacement. They loved my example answer and hired me the moment they discovered who I was."

"Don't you know that's my favorite column?" Lenora said now with a laugh. All tenseness in her chest and back faded away in an instant. "You wrote that one about that ridiculous Slam Poetry Night nonsense replacing Classic Evenings! I could have sworn the writer was copying my own angry rant on the topic."

"I, er, I had?" Dictatious admitted. He grinned a little when she laughed again. He relaxed visibly now, brave enough now to wrap one of his lower arms around her waist and bring her closer. 

"I thought you hated me." he confessed rather quietly.

"I...I suppose I was close to it. You have been rather horrible to me. If you had simply told me why you were so sour--"

"As my brother likes to remind me, I have a sense of pride that would shame the typical narcissist."

Lenora laid her head on his shoulder, tracing one of his chest markings idly. "You're not that bad. You simply don't know when to admit you need me."

"I always need you." 

She sighed. "I need you too. I suppose that's why I was so horrible to you as well. I didn't realize how much of myself I poured into you. To have you reject that..."

"I never would. I never will." Dictatious solemnly vowed. "I love you forever and always."

Upon their return to the church, Javier had, indeed, quieted things down, to the point where no one even cared about being tired for an overdue rehearsal dinner. Ophelia grinned knowingly as she sipped her wine, watching the two reformed lovebirds coo over each other despite Edith's cool demeanor. They looked to hold nothing back, and for the better -- toxic communication, as her therapist called it, had been killing them.

Under the table, away from even Ophelia's eyes, Dictatious slipped a folded note -- a sloppy doodle of a heart on the top of it -- into Lenora's lap nonchalantly. He hummed deeply as he heard his bride giggle and stuff it into her pocket. 

"For later." he whispered to her, before Lenora could even ask. And later she did open it, just as she readied herself to bed for a restless, excitable night of almost no sleep before her wedding day. She laid on her bed, her bedside lamp on, and poured over Dictatious's words as an almost-litany, before she nodded off.

In a slightly crumpled piece of motel stationary, still in her palm, the shakily-written vows would never be read aloud during the ceremony -- but they were spoken to Lenora with the same love that she and Dictatious were destined to swear to one another.

_My dearest Lenora, my sweet flower --_

_I vow myself unto you: all that I am, all that I will be, for the rest of my days and for the rest of your own. May our love offer you nothing less than radiant smiles, tender words of affection, and an unquestionable devotion to what we will become together. Forever and always, I am yours to cherish, just as I promise to cherish you._

And that was all she ever wanted.


	9. Dic Block

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dictatious is a needy old man that is having trouble finding time to be alone with his own wife -- but finds he isn't the only one feeling that way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a suggestive start to this chapter but nothing pornographic or erotic. Just throwing that out there for those who may be uncomfortable with that kind of material! Also haha get it??? "DIC Block" hahaha I'm FUNNY :|

Steam filling the bathroom from the shower, Lenora gave a shocked yelp as she felt cold, stony fingers trace up her bare spine. Three other hands grabbed onto her and pressed her back against her stalker. His chest rumbled in smug delight as his free hand played with her loose, curly hair.

"My my, is this a little maiden I have found? And all alone, to boot? How terrible! Someone should keep her company..."

Lenora giggled and held her towel close to her front as Dictatious continued to tease her. "Not now, Max, I have to get ready!"

"Walking in late for a PTA meeting -- those poor fools will miss out on your lemonade." Dictatious purred into her ear. The towel was tugged away and thrown onto the floor as he maneuvered his wife to face him; hands caressed her hips and back, making Lenora shudder and gasp. 

"But I would be an even _bigger_ fool for missing out on you."

Her head was pushed in for a feverish kiss, which Lenora returned eagerly. Just as Dictatious wrapped her legs around him to carry her into the shower, however, the door bell to their home began rapidly ringing. The kiss broke off as he growled.

"We're ignoring that." he demanded. Another fervent round of ringing started again, accompanied by hard knocking, just as he continued the kiss. Lenora sighed and detangled herself from Dictatious's greedy hold on her, grabbing the discarded towel to guard her body from further sensuous attacks.

"It sounds like something they won't let you ignore, whoever it may be." she said with some regret, but continued to her shower, alone, nonetheless. Dictatious was less reserved than his wife, and did not bother hiding it as he flung the door open. 

The smell was pubescent -- not stinky per se, though pungent with youth and energy. And there was two of them. How lovely.

"Alright, on with it, fleshwhelps! Who are you and what in Merlin's name do you need?" Dictatious snapped. One cleared his throat before continuing. 

"Pardon us sir, but we're the Creepslayerz, and we have reason to believe that there is a hive of goblins making a den on your property."

Dictatious raised a brow in doubt. The other boy continued for him.

"Normally we'd just go along and take care of it, but you know, Detective Scott told us about having to ask for permission now that this stuff isn't secret anymore."

"Fine. Whatever. Just be quiet and mind your business." 

The door was slammed in their face and the porch light shut off. Inside, Dictatious made a mad dash to the bathroom again, only to find that Lenora had already finished, putting up her hair while in her bathrobe.

"Sorry, hon, but I just got a text from Uhl -- he's got food poisoning. I have to actually contribute tonight."

Dictatious whined and plopped himself onto their plush toilet seat. "The world is out to prevent us from making love! I just know it!"

"It's just one busy night." Lenora chuckled. "And there is always tomorrow, you know. By the way, who was at the door?"

"Those boys Tobias works with -- creep slayers?" he answered, leaning back and crossing his arms. "They claimed there were goblins on our property."

Lenora froze. "Max."

"Yes, darling?"

"...You let Titania back inside, right?"

He had not, and made a mad dash once again, though to the outside, in their backyard. A miniature battle had already begun, as Eli fended off a goblin with a baseball bat, and Steve shielded a nonplussed ragamuffin cat from goblin attacks. Dictatious could not see the exact details of course, but his hearing and sense of smell could detect well enough that Titania was, indeed, alive, and called for her sharply.

"Come to me at once, you mangy fleabag!"

Titania happily responded by jumping into his lower set of arms. Just as quickly as Dictatious made his entrance, he had made an exit, leaving behind the teenagers to handle the racket. Lenora, dressed already for the PTA meeting, grabbed her beloved pet at once and held her close to her chest. Her eyes soon turned to the battle outside, however. 

"Oh Max, they're out there all alone! Where on earth are Toby and Aaarrgghh!!!?" 

Just then, the two burst through their lovely wooden fence, helping to end the goblin aid in seconds. Dictatious felt two of his eyes twitch. 

"There's always tomorrow..." he grumbled under his breath. 

Dictatious wasn't necessarily a superstitious fellow, though he found it hard to be a skeptic after his little dabbling with Morgana's magic. Whatever skepticism was left in his mind concerning luck evaporated over the following week, as advances made on Lenora went no where due to interruptions beyond their control.

First there was the fence business to take care of. Dictatious was dealing with the carpenters all day, arguing about pricing and making sure they did not gyp him on their repairs (not an easy task for a blind troll). By the time Lenora had returned home, Dictatious was already laying flat on his back on their bed, snoring loudly as Titania curled up on his chest with equally loud purrs. Lenora herself was exhausted by the late night previous at the school, as well as a long day with her students and staff meeting, so she simply collapsed next to her husband and joined the snoring. By the time he woke up, she had already gone for her daily round of teaching at Arcadia Oaks High.

Dictatious grew hopeful -- surely this would be his chance! He ordered flowers over the phone and even did extra chores around the home, to entice his wife towards the goal of being ravished.

Sadly, his clever plans did not include a surprise visit from his in-laws.

"Oh Max, isn't it wonderful?" Lenora exclaimed as she walked in with her mother. "They'll be in town until the weekend!"

"Just in time." he forced out with a toothy grin. As school was out until the next week, any plans he originally hoped for were equally dashed out the window. His only companion in all this was, of course, Titania, who almost seemed to sense his displeasure with life in general. He begrudgingly allowed her to lay on and against him more often than usual, if just to distract his frustrations. Aside from the cat, Dictatious's only respite was knowing his wife was genuinely happy to see her family again, and hearing them actually get along. 

But still -- the excitement left the two of them too tired to do much besides cuddle up, and snore the night away. By the time they finally made their leave, Dictatious grew grumpy and pouty, refusing to leave the bed at all the morning after their depature. Lenora found it amusing.

"What are you sulking for? It's a lovely morning, and I've no where to go." she said softly, playfully walking her fingers along his spine. He purred shamelessly.

"Don't want to move." he said, slightly muffled by his chosen pillow. Lenora saddled his back and leaned over him, tracing his sides the way he liked. 

"You don't have to, Max dear."

And he didn't have to -- _neither_ had to move all day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've written Titania in before and at this point, she is just a big ol kitty kat who doesn't give a darn about anything. Do you breathe??? Then she loves you. She is chill and afraid of nothing. Not exactly the best trait for a cat living in Arcadia but it is what it is.


	10. Oops I Fell In Love With A Fleshbag Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a successful first date, Dictatious works hard to get a second one, and Miss Janeth finds herself feeling the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YO WHADDUP BACK AT IT AGAIN WITH MY FAVE RAREPAIR 3Below is awesome and so is Christmas. Have a couple new chapters!
> 
> The prompt for this one was: _“He leans towards my touch, like he craves it.” - person a of person b_

“I heard you went on a date with Dictatious last night! I hope he was a gentleman, it’s been difficult getting him to use his manners.”

Miss Janeth choked a little on her tea. She sat the cup and saucer back onto Nana Domzalski’s coffee table and cleared her throat. “Ahem, forgive me, but I assumed you asked me over today to discuss Toby’s struggle in trigonometry?”

“Well yes, of course, but I do worry about Dictatious as well. It’s enough to fret over Toby’s after school activities, as proud as I am.” Nana explained pleasantly. Miss Janeth cleared her throat again.

“Mr. Galadrigal was…he was quite thoughtful, and made good company.” she answered as neutrally as she could. “You needn’t worry for my sake, Mrs. Domzalski.”

Thankfully that was all Nana needed to hear, and was happy enough to look over Toby’s progress in math. For a certain troll hiding just around the corner, however, he yearned to hear more; he scuffled away only when Chompsky began to pester him.

That evening, just as Miss Janeth was returning home from an evening jog, she found Dictatious waiting for her by her apartment’s entrance. He perked up almost immediately.

“Ah, Lenora! Forgive me for intruding, but I wished to speak with you.”

“Of…of course.” Miss Janeth answered warily. “May we speak inside?”

The lady at the reception desk said her hellos, and the two began to speak.

“Is there something wrong?” Miss Janeth asked. Dictatious shook his head, eyes wandering around the space where she stood.

“No, of course not! Well, not for me anyway. I’m afraid something of yours was left behind with me last night.”

Before she could ask, Dictatious held out a hand and produced one of the bracelets that she had worn on their date to the theater. Miss Janeth gasped.

“Oh! Oh dear! I had no idea I even misplaced it!”

Dictatious chuckled knowingly to himself. “Neither had I, until I found it in my pocket. We were quite cramped in that little alcove, so I assumed it naturally fell in there.”

“Naturally.” Miss Janeth said with some amusement. “Just my luck to lose something so precious, and on a first date no less.”

As she reached her own hand over to take it back, Dictatious’s fingers moved upwards to brush against her palm. Miss Janeth found her heart fluttering at the contact.

“You know, if you aren’t against it…” she began carefully.

“Yes?” Dictatious prodded, leaning a little over her, stepping closer. Miss Janeth held the bracelet to her chest bashfully.

“Perhaps we could go out for another evening of adventure?” she asked coyly. Dictatious gave her a pleased hum.

“A gentleman can never decline an invitation such as that! What did you have in mind?”

The date – to a culture festival in the botanical gardens – was to happen that next week, much to Dictatious’s disappointment. Not that it stopped him from trying to find the woman, of course. It was the compliment game all over again, though this time around Miss Janeth found herself giggling, rather than griping, in response.

And it wasn’t just compliments anymore. Dictatious hovered over her, almost looming, his fingers lingering a bit too long after a handshake or pat on the back. Miss Janeth never failed to find a stone arm draped across her shoulders whenever he lead them anywhere, sometimes leaning in a bit too close to speak with her. With every encounter, it took more effort to contain the shivers Dictatious caused.

“He leans towards my touch, like he craves it.” Miss Janeth explained to Ophelia Nunez, her only confident in matters of romance. They sat on a bench, watching fellow guests walk through the lighted gardens. “Are trolls normally so touchy-feely?”

Ophelia shrugged. “I can’t say. NotEnrique lived with us as a normal baby and after that, he hid away from us and left with Claire and Jim.”

She then looked thoughtful for a moment, and added, “You know, Strickler always seems to fuss over Barbara, from what I’ve seen of them. Maybe it’s just a troll thing.”

“Maybe.” Miss Janeth said to herself. Just then, Dictatious arrived, a walking stick alerting her to his presence, as it clack clacked on the cobble-stone path. She stood to meet him, but he greeted her first.

“Ah, my dearest Lenora! Even among these flowers, your scent is the sweetest.”

Normally such a thing would be creepy, but given he couldn’t exactly compliment her looks, Miss Janeth found herself blushing instead. Ophelia stood up, winking at her friend, before walking to find her own husband. Dictatious wrapped an upper arm around Miss Janeth’s, the lower one drawing about her waist to bring her in closer.

Craving her touch, indeed.

Still, who was the one leaning into his touch. Miss Lenora Janeth, that’s who. And she _enjoyed_ it. Realizing that she had feelings for the old troll after all, Miss Janeth allowed herself to enjoy the moment and relax into him. Dictatious stiffened a little in surprise before relaxing himself.

“Do you mind if I describe the flowers to you?” she asked, after they both enjoyed a comfortable silence among the buzz of the crowd.

“I suppose you should. I haven’t seen a flower in well over seven centuries.”

Miss Janeth’s eyes widened with shock. “You don’t say! I suppose that’s a long time.”

“For humans perhaps.” he said, sounding somewhat closed off now. “Though for trolls shut away in exile…”

Miss Janeth placed her free hand over his holding her waist.

“Forgive me, Mr. Galadrigal, I didn’t mean to upset you.” she said carefully. She beat herself up mentally, recalling what she heard from Strickler about the Darklands. Miss Janeth should have known better than to let the conversation move that direction. Dictatious sighed and turned his frown into a proud grin.

“Old demons for an old troll. Don’t fret over me.” he then stopped in front of a dogwood tree in full bloom. “What’s this then? It’s divine!”

Miss Janeth almost snorted, as the smell for her was close to rancid. “Dogwood. The flowers are little and white, and make the tree look like a fluffy cloud.”

“Hmmm.” Dictatious hummed, almost purring. “Tell me another one, my dear.”

He brought her in even closer, and Miss Janeth let him: he made a handy head rest after all. Just as she finished describing some tiger lily pushes, Dictatious stepped aside a little and faced her.

“You still call me Mr. Galadrigal.” he said, slightly disappointed.

“O-only because I wasn’t sure how you wished for myself to address you.” Miss Janeth assured. She held both of his upper hands as he moved the walking stick to his lower one. “Is there anything you wish for me to call you?”

Dictatious thought of many names of all kinds of colors, but coughed the thought out of his mind. “Er, perhaps something of your choosing, dearest?”

Miss Janeth giggled, enjoying the cutesy pet names he always called her by. Well, if she was ‘my dear’ and ‘dearest”, then that meant Dictatious would be…

“Max.”

Dictatious blinked his blind eyes. “I beg your pardon?”

“Max, short for Maximus. That is your middle name, isn’t it? I mean, Dictatious by shorthand would be…well…”

Dictatious’s eyes widened before he chortled and pulled her in closer.

“Fair enough. Gorgus knows how much my impudent little brother would tease me over that kind of name.” he agreed. “So, if you are my dearest, and I am your Max, are we, as the humans say, a ‘thing’?”

Miss Janeth playfully tapped his nose before taking his arm again and continuing their promenade.

“We’re not just a thing, Max dear, we’re dating.”

Dictatious gave a throaty chuckle in victory, a hand behind his back signaling to Toby, Aarrrgghh!!! and Darci that he didn’t need their back up any longer.

Darci won ten dollars from Toby that night, and Dictatious did not hear the end of that little loss for days to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I grew up in Missouri. Do you know how stinky dogwood flowers are??? They STANK. But trolls probably like it because trolls are gross.


	11. From First Kiss to Worst Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Different kisses from different times in the life of Miss Janeth and Dictatious's relationship -- one from an alternate reality, even. But all share the same thing -- the spark within themselves and between each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been wanting to do a kissing prompt since I posted this fic but never got around to it until now. Enjoy these dramatic babies!

**First Kiss**

Lenora was blissfully unaware of troll romance culture, aside from the fact that their face rubs and forehead touchings were their equivalent to a human kiss. They had been officially dating for well over a month now, and after all those “troll kisses”, felt ready to give Dictatious the real deal.

The setting was chosen by the spur of the moment, when she was dropped off in front of her apartment after one of their usual night time walks. Dictatious leaned in for a forehead touch – which Lenora happily gave, just before dipping her lips down to meet his.

A chaste little peck, Lenora did not dwell much on the moment after it ended, and said her good byes before going to her apartment. Just as she threw off her shawl and purse, her intercom buzzed and she answered to Dictatious.

“Max? Is something wrong?”

“Er…maybe? Come outside, again, if you please.”

She did, without her shawl, and hugged herself a little as she stood in the chilly air. “Yes, Max?”

He dipped down again, pulling her in with all four of his arms, and used his nose to guide his face in just the right way for another kiss. This one was slightly longer, and Dictatious purred with a grin.

Eventually Dictatious pulled away, and said to her, “I’m not sure what that was, but know that I like it the longer it lasts.”

—-

**Breaking the kiss to say something, staying so close they are murmuring into each other’s mouths + while pushing each other around and knocking things over/pushing one another on walls**

For all his griping about the displeasure of old age and blindness, Dictatious did have a knack for manhandling Lenora just the way she liked.

Lenora gasped into the kiss as he pushed her up and against the wall, breathing heavily when he broke away fleetingly.

“Do you ever realize how madly I love you?” he muttered, diving back in before she had a chance to answer. Her eyes only half-open, Lenora barely processed the side table knocking over to the side as Dictatious rushed her in his arms towards the fireplace. The kiss never broke even as she was plopped down onto the cushioned sitting rug. This time she broke it off, her lips still tickling his as she spoke.

“Enough to tear me away from grading papers, I see.”

“As if you rather grade.” Dictatious replied with a smug grin, and claimed her mouth once again.

—-

**lazy morning kisses when they don’t want to wake up**

“We live in an hour, Max!”

“Don’t wanna…”

A pillow was pulled over his head. Lenora rolled her eyes and placed the cat carrier holding Titania onto the dresser.

“But it’s the beach! We can hear the crashing waves, feel the warm water hit our feet and smell the salty air…”

She slowly slipped beside him, pulling the pillow off of her half-asleep husband. Soft, pink lips moved along the edge of his ears where she teased his earrings, earning her a throaty half-growl.

“…little cuddles in our beachfront rental…”

Lips moved to the side of his head, where she placed a kiss. Dictatious gave an approving hum.

“…making love under the moonlight…”

That got his eyes open.

“…You certainly know how to inspire a doting old fool.” Dictatious relented, rolling onto his back know to receive little kisses on his cheek. It was enough to push him out of bed and meander to their car for a long, much needed vacation.

—-

**post break up kiss + kissing in the heat of an argument**

Dictatious never moved in with her, and for the better – it was easier to collect some of the things he left behind.

Well, practically easier. Emotionally speaking, Lenora felt like a mess.

It all fit neatly into a little cardboard box, which she eventually carried outside to where her now ex-boyfriend waited for her. Dictatious looked as miserable as she felt.

Trolls did not have wrinkles, being made of stone, but even Lenora could have sworn his under eyes had gone droopy, and his grey streaks growing thicker on his normally dark hair.

“Miss Janeth.” he greeted neutrally. Lenora almost called him ‘Max’, before clearing her throat and decided against calling him by name at all.

“I gathered your things.” she said simply. “If something is missing, I can do another look through.”

Dictatious lacked a reply as he took the box from her. He stood there a moment, clearly struggling as he fiddled with it.

“I…I do not wish to end this with any bitterness left between us.” Dictatious finally admitted. A car drove by before he continued. “I’ll always be fond of you, despite everything.”

Lenora sighed, looking away. “I…thank you. I hate for things to end so badly, myself.”

She looked up. Dictatious still stood there awkwardly, trying to think of something else to say. So, Lenora spoke for him.

“I shouldn’t have pushed you so much about the Darklands.” she admitted. “I just wish…I wish I was worthy of your trust.”

“Damn it woman, you are!” he exclaimed, dropping the box to reach his hands out to Lenora on the steps. “But if you went to Hell and survived, would you preach about it?!”

“I didn’t want your preaching, I wanted to hear you out!”

“Oh to hear my defense for the things I’ve done? I needn’t be reminded of that!”

“You know damn well that never bothered me!”

“Well clearly _something_ bothers you, otherwise you wouldn’t be half the twittering gossip that you are!”

Lenora growled and slapped Dictatious across the face.

“After all I’ve done to salvage what we had, all you can give me still are insults?!”

Dictatious froze, a hand touching where he was hit. He then stepped up quickly to Lenora, pulling her towards him into a deep and desperate kiss. Lenora sighed and wrapped her arms around his neck. He then buried his face into the crook of her own neck as she ran fingers through his hair.

“I swear on my honor I won’t do it again.” he begged, taking in her scent. “You are more than the harsh words I fling at you!”

“I should…I should trust you more.” Lenora sighed. “I always fear you’re going to push me away like the others…”

“ _Never._ ”

There was a honk from an incoming car, not that it stopped their passionatly guilt-ridden make-out session

“Get a room, gramps!” the driver shouted, pulling into the parking lot. The lovers ignored him, continued to kiss and promise to end their cruelties to one another.

—-

**top of head kisses + kisses while sitting on the lap**

Dictatious fiddled with his keyboard a bit, practicing a braille lesson when he smelled his wife enter. She dipped down, kissed the top of his wild-haired head, and dropped something onto his bookcase. Before Lenora could walk back out, Dictatious cackled darkly and swooped her into his lap.

“If you’re going to kiss me, I demand more than that, my love!”

She shrugged, a sly grin growing on her face. “If you insist, Max dear.”

Dictatious leaned his head in, expecting his lips to meet Lenora’s, only to feel her position herself so that she could sit up and continue kissing his temple. He chuffed out his nose.

“That is _not_ what I meant!”

“But it’s what you’re getting!” Lenora giggled, pecking him more before she was gently shoved off.

—-

**a hoarse whisper “kiss me…please.” askldjghksh slightly yandere here I guess since this is a continuation of sorts from the Aladdin crossover chapter**

He was a sorcerer. A King. A _god_ for all intents and purposes. Precious jewels, the best lands, and scores of servants beckoned to Dictatious with the snap of a finger. All of this power and control was Lenora’s for the taking, if she would have him.

So why didn’t the damn woman _love him back?_

“Lenora, my little gem, it doesn’t have to be like this.” Dictatious said, his shaking hands touching her face. He did not wish to admit that, after all the ravaging and razing of the surfaceworld he did, Lenora still did not love him.

He _couldn’t_ admit that.

“You made it like this.” Lenora replied, stony and unfeeling. “You think this is what I wanted? You to act like a typical despot? To conquer the world with your bloodthirsty army?”

Dictatious turned her to face him, blind but using his magic to sense her energies. He sensed the barest hint of her form, lithe and little, soft and warm. Whatever heartache the sorcerer-king felt now and would always feel because of her rejections, the desperation for the woman before him was even stronger.

Lenora was brought in closer, Dictatious firmly holding her chin to look up at his face.

“What do you want from me?” Lenora said, breaking down a little. “After all this hell, what do you want?”

Dictatious swallowed, touching his nose with hers.

“Kiss me, _please._ ”

It was quiet, but hoarse – a demand as much as it was a beg. Lenora shivered in a mixture of self-disgust and want of hope as she pushed forward to give her king what he asked.


	12. All The World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Realizing that their lives have become a little to hum-drum for their tastes, Dictatious goes out to give his wife the surprise of a lifetime.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was “Let’s run away together.” I didn't expect to finish this so quickly, but I like how it's the beginning of something new for them. :)

“Let’s run away together!”

“For what? We’re already married.” Lenora chuckled. She swiped a finger over her phone’s screen, going through a scholastic article, and desperately hoping to find a better theme for the science fair. Dictatious sat next to her, a hand of his on her thigh, which he lightly squeezed to get her attention again.

“So what? Unmarried buffoons shouldn’t get _all_ the fun.” he then shifted a little on the couch as it creaked under his weight. “Besides, I couldn’t help but think of the time you were a merwoman, and our lovely trip to the beach...life here is rather boring, you know. I’m always reminded of that fact when something shakes it up.”

Lenora lightly chuckled and pocketed her phone. “I don’t blame you. Working with the public school system is always a drag for me. I...well, it doesn’t matter.”

Having cut off her thought rather quickly, Dictatious pulled her close to him. “Now now, dearest, tell me! I want to know what you think.”

“Just…” Lenora started, before letting out a heavy, wearied breath. “Max, I don’t like my job anymore. It’s decent pay, which is rare, and I do the work well enough. I rarely receive any complaints from parents or the school board.”

“But you don’t like it anymore.” 

Dictatious said so with a gentle tone, the playfulness from before no longer there. He rubbed her back a little, prompting her to continue. 

“I don’t. I feel replaceable, as if they could hire a younger, fresher teacher with energy I no longer have. I became a teacher to change the world, and for what? All I ended up with was a stagnant career and a dead end side job of reciting poetry, and only because the theater never casts me for anything.”

“But the cafe loves you on Poetry Night!”

“I’m the only volunteer for Poetry Night. And the crowds don’t go anymore.”

Dictatious snorted out his nose in shock. In his blindness, he never thought to sniff out the crowds whenever he visited the spot to hear his wife perform; the scent of coffee, sweets, and freshly-cleaned floors often overwhelmed him and he learned to tune out his olfactory senses. 

“My dearest! I never knew...realized--!”

Lenora sighed, slumping against him. “I’m not upset with you, Max. You’re always so supportive. But running away...it sounds _tempting_ , no doubt, but running away, even for a little while, can’t give me what I long for.”

Green stone fingers petted her hair softly. “What do you long for, my love?”

In a little, hurt voice, Lenora replied, “I don’t know anymore.”

That pain haunted Dictatious for the rest of the evening, as he fussed over Lenora and encouraged her to take it easy. As soon as he wrapped her up in their nest of a bed and knew she was asleep, Dictatious let Titania in to cuddle the woman, and then left into the night.

Lenora went into the kitchen that morning, realizing that Dictatious had not yet started the coffee as he normally did. There was a note left behind next to their coffee maker, printed in both braille and written word:

_Ran away for your surprise -- meet me where we enjoyed our first date in the evening._

“...Oh my.” Lenora muttered to herself. Titania mowed and laid by her spot next to the sliding glass door, enjoying the sun as it continued to rise. After wrapping up her work at the school and checking on the cat, she then drove back into town to pick up some food and meet with Dictatious in front of the community theater. 

It was a sad sight. Not necessarily broken down, but empty with a hint of neglect to come to it. It needed a new coat of paint and it showed. From previous visits to it since their first outing to the place, Dictatious and Lenora both realized that the crowds dwindled and the atmosphere changed. 

Lenora met her husband in the once-opulent entrance, the intricate rug a little ragged from constant foot traffic in its more glamorous past. They shared a kiss, and she smirked at the barely suppressed sense of glee and pride Dictatious gave off.  
“Alright then, so what’s with this run away business?”

Dictatious accepted her little trash bag from the car, and sat down with her at a nearby bar-table to share the meal. “You mentioned that you long for something.”

“Yes.” Lenora answered carefully, nibbling at her veggie quinoa. 

“As well as wishing to make a change in the world.”

“...I had…”

After a hearty swallow of plastic, Dictatious politely burped into his fist, patted his mouth with a napkin, and then said as plain as day, “Because of that, I bought the community theater.”

Lenora choked and gasped for air out of shock. 

_“Excuse you?!”_

“You don’t like it?” Dictatious replied with worry. Lenora stood away from the bar and rubbed her forehead with both her hands.

“You bought...the whole building...a theater…!”

“I did.” Dictatious shared more warily now. “For you, dearest. You’ve always wished to perform, or have a hand in something other than school plays, and with you feeling so down about your current job…”

Lenora stood there, unsure of how to feel and uneasy at Dictatious’s abnormally unsure disposition. Quickly the woman collected herself and stepped back to her husband.

“Max, honey, this...this is incredible! Terrifying but incredible! Is...this how you want to run away with me? To quit my job and run a theater with you?”

Now, Dictatious smiled that smug, proud smile. “Only for you, my dearest Lenora, if you accept. Do you want this?”

Lenora giggled, then cackled a little, before fainting at her husband’s feet.

Dictatious took it as a ‘yes’.


	13. Eternal Midsummer's Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Titania falls ill and Lenora grieves over the choices she has had to make along the way. Dictatious does what he does best in response -- writes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  **Trigger warning: death of a pet.** Sad feels for days. :( 
> 
> The prompt was: “Your favorite pet is ailing incredibly. The vet says that he could survive up to one more year but in increasingly worse pain. He suggests putting the pet down. Describe what you do.”

“I don’t…I don’t understand…”

Dr. Rickland sighed. He was getting too old for a job that often had sad moments tied to it. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Galadrigal, but Titania’s cancer has spread all over her body. At most she has a year, but I can’t promise you it’ll be a fun one for her.”

“But she’s so young!” Lenora tried to argue, knowing full well there was no use. The vet shook his head.

“You can take her home, for now. I’ll give you enough pain meds to last the week. But after that, I need you to come in and make a decision for her.”

Titania snoozed in her crate as she was carried out. She arrived home on that cruelly sunny afternoon, her husband running his hand over a book in braille as the radio droned on the news. Boxes were piled around him, but even with his office now empty, Dictatious insisted on staying in their home until the very last day.

The hand paused over the page, and he quickly closed it as another hand turned off his radio. “Not good news, I take it?”

“…No. Titania is going to be put to sleep soon. She’s more ill than we thought.”

The crate was set down and the door of it opened, for Titania to roam after she woke up.

Dictatious gently pulled her into his lap. “Easy my dear, easy.”

“But it’s not _fair._ ” Lenora cracked a little, slumping against her husband. “We finally got a season running for the theater, and for what? We have to sell our house, Titania is dying, and…and…”

Lenora stopped herself as sobs took over. Dictatious could only hold her close, sighing as he felt useless. If anything could break through his pride to make him ask for help, it would be the tears of his wife.

After Lenora collected herself and focused on Titania, Dictatious slipped away and borrowed her phone to make a call.

—-

A week passed, and far too quickly, but Lenora felt at peace knowing that she spoiled Titania rotten. There were plenty of photos and videos of her last days, as well as memories of eating burgers and enjoying rides in the beat up pull wagon Barbara lent to her. The actors at the theater, too, gave Titania much love, one of them even dressing her up as a fairy in honor of her namesake.

It was a much needed respite and comfort before putting down Titania at the clinic. Lenora held the ragamuffin in her lap, petting her just the way she liked, even for a bit after she passed. As Titania's eyes slowly lost their light, Lenora could not help but slightly amend and recite from the play that gave the cat her name.

 _"Be kind and courteous to this gentle-cat;_  
_Hop in her walks and gambol in her eyes;_  
_Feed her with apricots and dewberries,_  
_With purple grapes, green figs, and mulberries;_  
_The honey-bags steal from the humble-bees,_  
_And for night-tapers crop their waxen thighs_  
_And light them at the fiery glow-worm's eyes,_  
_To have my love to bed and to arise;_  
_And pluck the wings from Painted butterflies_  
_To fan the moonbeams from her sleeping eyes:_  
_Nod to her, elves, and do her courtesies."_

It was something of a prayer, and despite her simple Catholic faith, was uncertain of whether it counted as one. But she was certain of one thing: Titania had known nothing but love her whole life, and Lenora found some comfort in that.

Still, Titania was gone. Forever. And Lenora did not even have her old house to go to for cherishing the memories made there. Instead, she resided, with Dictatious, in a condo-like apartment at the very top of the theater. It was formerly a studio for artists, and reconstructing it to use as a home provided a decent enough distraction. For a while, at least.

“I have something for you, dearest.” Dictatious said one evening. Lenora was pouring over email applications for a social media expert and did not even look up when he addressed her.

“In a moment, Max dear. If I don’t find someone tonight, I’m strangling the wise guy who thought social media was a bright idea for advertisement and community outreach.”

He chuckled, and walked up behind her at her easy chair where she sat. “Oh, the glamorous career of a director! But, I do think this will interest you.”

Lenora glanced over, noting a book in his lower set of hands. Then she did a double take, realizing that it was a trollish looking tome, with a troll etching of TItania on the cover.

“…Max…”

“Blinkous and I collaborated for a final writing project of mine, for you to read whenever you wish.”

The tome was taken gently after the laptop was closed and set aside. Her hand grazed down the leather cover, tracing the outline of Titania’s design. In English, the title read, “The Misadventures of Miss Titania Galadrigal.”

“Oh, Max – you needn’t have…all of this for…for…”

“For you.” Dictatious said proudly. “Blinkous had to do much of the handiwork of course, but I provided all the necessary details and storytelling for your enjoyment.”

It was enjoyment, alright. Lenora opened it and found various tales of Titania’s life, starting with her journey in the wilderness with her mother and litter, through her scraps with Dictatious and goblins, and ending with a journey towards a mystical realm of the fae. She sniffled at that part – in more ways than one, Lenora certainly believed in fairies, and above all, in her Titania.

“Thank you, Max. Thank you so much.” Lenora hugged her husband and she gently kissed his lips.

“And your brother too, of course.” she added as she stepped back from him. “Blinkous is more of a brother than I ever thought he would be.”

Dictatious humphed. “It was _my_ idea, you know.”

“Oh I don’t know, Max, I do see his name on the cover.” Lenora giggled, riling up her proud husband – anything fun and jovial to distract her from further work for the evening.

At the least, it’s what Titania would have wanted for the woman and the troll she loved for her whole life.


	14. Mermaid Mystery: Discovered

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lenora discovers more about herself than she ever thought possible, and all things considered: that's not the craziest thing she and Dictatious have to deal with anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A continuation of the mermaid prompt. These two needed some more lovin’ after all that stress and nonsense!

“Are you sure about this, my dear?” Dictatious asked. The more he did so, the less hesitant he sounded – though that never truly deflated his concern for Lenora’s comfort. She laughed him off and splished her glittering mermaid tale in the hot tub. The bathroom being property of their hotel room, she cared little for after-use clean up.

“If things don’t work out, I’ll just switch back to human legs and go from there.” Lenora assured him with a grin. It grew into an indulgent smirk as she watched her husband undress to dip into the tub. “Besides, Merlin said I should use this form as often as necessary to get used to it.”

“I’m sure he meant _swimming_ laps, not sitting upon _mine._ ” Dictatious corrected, but smirked now as well. It faded as he groaned at the sensation of hot salt water warming his aching joints, and leaned his head back.

“A troll can get used to this.”

Lenora floated over to his side, her long, loose hair floating by her scaled hips. As much as she loved how much longer and more lush it got in this form, she still had a couple gray hairs growing in – something she had _not_ been fond of, at her age. That, along with stressing over opening nights at the theater, issues with the bank on the buyer of their old home, and losing her precious Titania, it all compounded enough to cause a spontaneous transformation back into her mermaid form.

On the one hand, it certainly served as a much needed distraction, and offered them a chance to take a much needed break; on the other hand, Lenora Janeth Galadrigal was – for all intents and purposes – a changeling.

It felt bizarre calling herself that, knowing full well that her circumstances and biology were much different than that of Walt. She had no familiar kidnapped for her merwoman nor human forms, and she was never a child captive of war. Just thinking about what Walt and the others had to go through made her shiver.

Still, Lenora could turn into a _mermaid!_ A childhood dream! And unlike with the previous “curse”, she could change at will; or at least, she always had the ability to, but never knew how to activate it until now. It was much less worrying than having to use a wheelchair to get around until she found a potion that worked.

“Are you fussing with your hair again?” Dictatious said suddenly, sitting up straighter and wrapping two arms around her. The guilty party in question stopped with her constant twirling of curls and set a hand onto his chest.

“Only a little.” Lenora admitted. “I suppose it’s more than just my hair, it’s everything. Everything changing. And all at once, I might add.”

He hummed, a lower hand exploring her tail in the water. “We can handle those changes later. Tonight we focus on only one another.”

“Can you believe it, Max? Two years already!”

Lenora was moved weightlessly onto his lap, where his legs opened a little. Dictatious purred against the crook of her neck and held her close.

“I’ll believe _anything,_ if it means staying with _you._ ”

It wasn’t hard to make love after that. The bathroom soon echoed with giggles and laughter that turned into something more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> spoiler alert for future chapter: making love as a mermaid has consequences >:3c


	15. Family Dinner Fun with the Galadrigals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Knowing how much Jim has struggled in the past few years, Blinky and Lenora set up a dinner party to show their support. She bonds with her step-nephew in ways she didn't think would happen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I came to the sudden realization the other day that in this fic, Lenora is technically a kind of step-aunt/aunt-in-law to Jimbo...so I HAD to write SOMETHING! No prompts this time, just awkward family dinners.

Just as Lenora okayed the advertisements for hiring, her phone buzzed for a call. A call from Blinky. Although surprised, she answered.

“Hello Blinky. Is something the matter?”

There was an awkward chuckle. Lenora smiled at the sound. Although the Galadrigal brothers would always deny it, one always resembled the other in some way -- including their laughter. While Blinky was more robust and jovial and Dictatious more subtle and darkly humored, their rich rumbles were similar all the same.

“Oh not at all. But, ah, I suppose I decided to call you first, as I know Dictatious would not be open to the idea.”

Lenora snorted. “You two need to give each other a break, already. But go on, what is it?”

“I...I have come to the realization, that I have a family. And I feel foolish for not doing more to strengthen our bonds, because of my past with Dictatious.”

No one could blame him for that. “We could always reach out more, ourselves, you know. But with you acting as Elder and Dictatious and I running our own theater, I would never press upon you to make more an effort than necessary.”

“Of course, of course! But, this is more for Jim, than myself, I am ashamed to admit.” Blinky confided. “The boy has his mother of course, but he has been greatly distressed at the passing of his grandparents.”

“I heard of that from Barbara.” Lenora said, sounding sad herself. “Jim isn’t lonely, is he?”

“That’s why I called. He has a family, and I’ve prevented him from reaching out to find them. Specifically speaking, you and my brother.”

Lenora frowned at that. Though Blinky more or less adopted the boy as his son, she was unsure of how he would react to the idea of bonding with Dictatious. Lenora forgave him of his past, but Jim himself had been in his captivity in the Darklands. That was not something to glaze over.

“Are you sure that is in Jim’s best interests?” Lenora put forth carefully. “Especially if he is in mourning, after all.”

“Just one visit to Arcadia is all I ask.” Blinky offered. “We can invite over Barbara and Walter, and have them dine with us all. Even Tobias and Claire could join in, with their own respective families.”

“To show Jim the family he’s had all along.”

“Exactly!”

It was hard to say no to a get-together. She and Blinky made plans, and the two worked over the course of a week to coincide a family dinner at the local French restaurant in town. Dictatious was vaguely aware of Blinky’s visit, but had no clue as to its size and complexity. That certainly explained why he sat, sour-faced in his plush seat, as the people around him chatted amicably and passed around food. It was past the establishment’s hours, using their “special event” rooms to host the dinner party.

Lenora’s wary eyes looked over her husband, whom she gave some space too. She wondered how Dictatious would feel if he had his sight, as she spotted Nomura joining in a little late and casually sitting alongside Blinky. He gently patted her leg before continuing his conversation with Barbara and Walt. Nana mentioned something to Aarrrgghh!!!, who could only grin at her question.

Despite the buzz of friendship and family going on about them, Lenora turned her gaze over towards Jim, where he sat with Claire’s parents and brother. He looked content enough, if restrained.

“Max dear, why don’t you speak with your brother? it’s been a while.” Lenora gently prompted. He humphed at the suggestion, though his face did soften.

“If this was some kind of set up--”

“For Jim, not against you.” she soothed him. “Though I do think it is high time you both started making amends.”

Dictatious rolled his blind eyes. “For Jim, I’m guessing?”

“For Jim.” Lenora said with a smile and a kiss. That brightened his mood, and he waddled off with his walking stick to find Blinky. Lenora also got up from her seat, but to sit next to Ophelia.

“Hi Miss Janeth!...Er, Mrs. Galadrigal?” Claire said questioningly. Ophelia laughed.

“It’s been two years and you still call her Miss Janeth?”

Claire shrugged. “Hey, I’ve been gone for two years.”

Lenora eyed Jim carefully, who had been awfully quiet. “A lot can happen in such a short time. Anything I should catch up on? I always love a good story, after all.”

“Just, uh, Trollhunting stuff.” Jim answered vaguely. Claire then started telling her parents of a recent escapade into an abandoned cavern in Novia Scotia, as Jim excused himself to use the restroom. Lenora followed him over her glass of wine, noting that he went in the opposite directions of where the restroom actually was.

After waiting a moment, Lenora got up and quietly followed Jim’s trail. Just as she suspected, he hid away in the shadows outside, in the neighboring alley way, his back towards her. His shoulders shook a little. 

_What on earth am I doing?_ Lenora thought to herself. It wasn’t like she had no idea what to do -- as a teacher, she was not ignorant of ways to help wayward teenagers.

But this was _Jim._ He was half-troll, grieving, and likely feeling lost, perhaps even overwhelmed. Lenora cleared her throat to alert him to her presence.

“M-Miss Janeth?” Jim stuttered, hurriedly wiping his eyes. “Sorry, I was just..uh...”

“That’s Mrs. Galadrigal to you.” Lenora corrected him evenly. But with a sympathetic smile, added, “Though, in your case, I suppose I am Aunt Lenora.”

Jim snorted out his nose in an almost half-laugh, but his face fell again. “Sorry. I just...I dunno if I want to be here right now. I only came because of Blinky.”

Lenora walked over to crouch by him. “Surely you missed your mother too, and your friends here. Toby talks about your video chats all the time.”

Jim looked away and breathed unevenly for a while. He barely registered the soft hand that laid on his shoulder.

“Jim, I know we...aren’t exactly close, but I would like to be. We’re family, even if just by marriage to your father’s brother. I’m glad you came tonight, it does mean a lot to everyone inside.”

“Too bad I chickened out.” Jim said with a weary grin. “Is...is that bad?”

“To get some fresh air? Hardly.” Lenora answered, but Jim shook his head.

“No, I mean...not wanting to be here. Not being happy all the time.”

Jim paused before adding, “Or at all.”

Oh, that broke her heart.

“There is nothing wrong with needing your space or feeling the way you do.” Lenora told him in her trained teacher voice. She caught herself and tried to sound more maternal. “A lot has happened to you in such a short time. Sometimes, that means we have feelings that confuse us, or make us feel guilty, because we think we’re not allowed to feel that way. But you have every right to feel however you wish.”

There was a shrug of a response, so Lenora wrapped it up to give him some space.

“But please do speak up when you feel this way. Your mother and father deserve to know, your friends deserve to know. They are always there to help you.”

Jim looked up now. “Thanks, yeah, I should probably stop trying to act like a loner. It’s never worked before. But, um...”

Now the boy looked sheepish, which was oddly adorable when the face also had protruding fangs and an animal-like nose. Lenora smiled and patted his back.

“Is there something else you wish to share?”

“Just, um...there was another reason I kinda came outside.” he added quietly. Now twiddling his forefingers, he said in exasperation, “Do both of my trainers _have_ to date each other?”

Lenora let out a snort of laughter, causing Jim to smile a little bit. “Hey, I mean it! It’s gross!”

“I suspect that if you are alright with your mother marrying a Changeling, then perhaps it’s not so terrible that your father shows interest in one as well.” Lenora said, standing up and helping him up too. She then grew a rather mischievous smile on her face.

“Besides, if you wish to show your displeasure at their union, you could always tease them about it. In front of everyone.”

Jim’s eyes brightened greatly at the thought, and she laughed again. This was going to be one interesting dinner party.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> BlinkyxNomura because I ALSO LOVE THEM. Bad Decisions Aunt needs to join in the Galadrigal fun okay???


	16. Mermaid Mystery: Nesting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Among the stresses of hiring help for the theater and dealing with illness among their crew, life gives even more surprises for Lenora and Dictatious to handle. Four of them, to be exact.

At first, Lenora assumed it was stress. As with her grey hairs, her belly started to gain a little weight as the theater’s season progressed.

“I just don’t get it! Things are going well.” Lenora pouted as she squeezed it in while looking in the mirror. Dictatious sat at his desk in the corner, more focused on his typewriter – he had been absorbed in the project for days now.

“Even when tickets sell out and rave reviews pour in, stress is stress.” Dictatious droned. “By the way, how long would it take for a book’s ink to run if it fell underwater? I’m having a hard time with Google”

Lenora growled at the question and sauntered off to their room for a much needed nap.

She did not feel much better the next day. A base case of the stomach flu had made its round in the theater, and Lenora found herself as the sole understudy for the Wicked Witch. Dictatious buzzed about the theater to make sure the shows went on smoothly, none-the-wiser that his lightheaded wife was drinking ginger ale and eating crackers to stop herself barfing during the play. Experienced actress that she was, Lenora pulled off the role magnificently and the crowd loved it.

When he _did_ find out about her secret illness, Dictatious unceremoniously dumped the woman into their bed afterwards, and played nurse.

“There will be no death by virus in my household.” he demanded, setting up a tray with the needed medication and foodstuff for Lenora. “Honestly, woman! You’ll leave me a widower before my time.”

She curled up into her blanket. “I never meant to worry you, Max. Perhaps I just need to swim a bit. It’s been a while, and you know how staying away from the water makes me ill.”

“After some rest.” Dictatious agreed. “I can fill in again tomorrow night. The real Wicked Witch is feeling better now, and can easily reprise her role.”

Lenora sighed and laid a weak hand over his. “You’re far too good to me.”

“Who? Me? I would never!” Dictatious chuckled with a rub of his forehead to hers. He frowned a little, noting that Lenora was not feverish as the other humans had been. “But, no matter. We’ll find a new director to take over for you soon enough. With how great everything has been, we have more than enough to–”

But Lenora was already snoring herself asleep. Dictatious grumbled; perhaps she had overworked herself more than she let on. With a final peck on her head, he got up and left to make arrangements for interviews.

To his astonishment, the woman slept for hours at a time beyond the normal human circadian rhythms. Lenora would force herself to go over papers for a few hours, and check on rehearsals; she even popped in for a couple of interviews before politely excusing herself and sleeping even more.

Fed up with his wife hiding away so much, Dictatious cornered her in their little bathroom, where she laid out in her finfolk form in the tub. He pulled her out of the water where she napped and shocked her awake.

“What the hell was that for?!” Lenora snapped. “I’m exhausted!”

“You have the napping habits of a freshborn whlep!” Dictatious argued, looming over her. Though blind, he could practically smell the magic roll off of her in waves and it was irritating him in his already frazzled state. “If you are hiding any sickness from me, I swear –!”

Lenora grunted a little, her brows furrowing in confusion as she felt her pelvic region tighten. Dictatious rubbed his forehead, assuming she was about to throw up.

“I knew it! You’re terribly ill and you’ve hidden it from me! How could you! Allow me to call Dr. Lake, perhaps she could come over and check on you.”

“Ah…” Lenora breathed out. Dictatious nodded.

“No no, you’re right, in your finfolk form she may not be much of use. Do you think Merlin is up at this hour in New Jersey?”

“AaaAAAAAH!” Lenora shouted in surprise, hoisting herself up a little by her arms at the edge of the tub. There was a _plip plop_ sound as she semi-collapsed back into the tub. Her usual magical output was there, as the saltiness of the faux-ocean Lenora always concocted when she used the tub as her mermaid spa. This time however, she went a bit overboard – there was definitely seaweed in there, likely obtained from their local health market, as well as the abrasiveness of sand. How she got sand was beyond him. 

But there was an earthier smell too now, soft but obvious, coming from the water, from whatever dropped in there. Dictatious’s mind froze as he barely comprehended what was happening.

“…Max, I think I just laid an egg.”

All six of Dictatious’s eyes blinked rapidly, at different rates. No, that couldn’t be right…right? All he could get out was, “Pardon?!”

Lenora grunted again when the tightness returned. It was not painful, per se, but the power of what she assumed were some kind of contractions were certainly strong. Another egg plip-plopped into the water. The earthy smell was more obvious now.

“You…you’re laying.” Dictatious said breathlessly, half-stumbling onto his knees to lean by the tub. “You’re laying!”

“Well obviously, yes!” Lenora shouted now, as an another egg worked it’s way out. She was too out of it to look into her tub-nest and see what the eggs looked like. Instead, she leaned against her husband, who held onto her, and pushed out another.

“How many eggs do mermaids lay?!” Lenora piped in fear. Her mind went to the thousands of eggs various fish species would lay, and had no idea how she could handle that many kids.

Oh dear Gorgus they were _parents._ They had _babies_ now. Egg babies, but babies nonetheless.

“I can’t do this! It’s too soon! I can’t!” Lenora gasped for breath, feeling her tighten up again in preparation for another egg. Dictatious soothed her with back rubs and nuzzles to her temple.

“Easy, darling. They’re just eggs. Finfolk typically lay no more than four or five at a time. You’ve had three already, you’re doing just fine.”

Hearing Dictatious say that relaxed Lenora enough to finally lay that fourth egg. After the final plip-plop, she let out a long breath and strangely felt empty.

“I…I think I finished.” Lenora sighed in relief. She dared not look into her little nest that she made; she far preferred Dictatious’s embrace.

“You did wonderfully.” Dictatious cooed. He sounded much more calmer now, despite not feeling that way. But so long as Lenora was healthy and happy, he felt it no use to scare her further.

“Though, I suppose this explains your unusual behavior, as of late.”

Lenora giggled. “And I just thought I was gaining my weight in Nouget Nummies.”

“All for a good cause.” Dictatious sighed, standing a bit away from her. “Though I suppose I should call Blinkous. He _is_ an uncle now.”

Lenora brightened up at that. Having kids sounded frightening, but growing a family? Somehow that felt less intimidating. “Should we tell Merlin too? I have no idea what I am doing. Going off instinct alone is making me feel feral.”

“Of course, dearest. We’ll figure it out together.” Dictatious said. They shared a kiss, and left after Lenora sunk into the water to curl around her eggs. A scene of hopeful domesticity immediately transformed into panic.

Dictatious bumped into furniture willy-nilly; someone downstairs likely heard his maddening thumps as he ran. The closer he walked to the phone, the more manic he moved. By the time he punched in his brother’s number and was answered, Dictatious practically screamed out:

_“HELP ME – I HAVE **CHILDREN!** ”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >:3c Been looking forward to this one for a long time, heuheuheu
> 
> Also, something of a spoiler for a future chapter, concerning Jimbo -- HE'S GONNA BE SUCH A GOOD COUSIN!


	17. Dictatious gets a little too excited about historical public executions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Instead of searching for prompts, I made a random list of topics I felt would be fun to drabble about and then proceeded to write. One of them is even Valentine's themed :) Enjoy!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> also klsadhglasd I feel like I'm pumping out Jantatious material at lightening speed. They are just too fun to write for and they took on a life of their own at this point.

**Cryptid**

The tabloid was thrown onto their coffee table as Dictatious relaxed in his easy chair that morning. His head turned to where he heard Lenora walked towards.

“Dictatious, we really need to talk about your usual habits around the town.”

“What habits?” he asked, genuinely confused for once.

“For starters, could you consider staying _within_ the city limits? You were caught wandering into the nearby trailer park!”

“Ah! So those were trailers, not buses I felt!” Dictatious said in good nature. Then he paused thoughtfully, and asked in all seriousness, “So did these humans photograph me on my good side?”

**Kids Theater**

“This...this was a mistake.”

Lenora watched in horror as the elementary school children ran about the stage in their costumes, only barely acting in character. After Dictatious thoughtlessly gave them soda as a treat for being polite thus far, it was a miracle they thought to do some acting at all.

One child began to chant one of the Oompa Loompa songs from the _Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory_ movie -- he was, in fact, Monkey #2 in the play version of _The Jungle Book_. A girl acting as Bagheera somehow managed to get Shere Khan and Baloo to worship her as “The Kitty Goddess”. Part of this cultish ritual involved Mowgli and King Louie having a shouting match of who should be sacrificed first.

“I’m not watching them when they crash for a nap.” Lenora told her husband flatly, eyes never leaving the stage. Dictatious chuckled nervously.

“That’s fair.”

**Valentine’s Day**

“Did you know? This Valentine fellow was beheaded for trying to convert the Roman Emperor -- how admirable.”

“I’m _Catholic_ , Max. I learned this growing up.”

“Oh! And one called ‘Lawrence’ was cooked over a fire! Sounds delightfully tasty.”

“Max, I admire your willingness to learn more about my faith, but perhaps we should save it for _outside_ of a candlelit dinner?”

Dictatious paused in his info-dumping and puffed his cheeks a little, as if he were a boy caught trying to steal a cookie. He then realized that perhaps some of the other patrons of the restaurant overheard him. Humans had a bizarre concept of table manners, something which Dictatious often forgot.

“Ah, forgive me, dearest. I got carried away earlier when looking up romantic traditions for this feast day.” He admitted.

“Public executions and martyrdom.” Lenora said with a chuckle. “What’s more romantic than that?”

Dictatious waggled his brows at her. “Perhaps a kiss or three?”

He wasn’t wrong, so Lenora happily gave it.

**Birth Videos**

Ever the helpful friend, Ophelia chatted with Lenora non-stop about how to prepare for not just parenthood, but also “the big day”. While she obviously wasn’t going to give birth, the babies would have to hatch at _some_ point, the woman reasoned.

And that was how Lenora found herself on youtube, looking up and watching however many videos she could on fish eggs hatching. Dictatious wondered by, ears flicking with interest at the narrator’s voice, and looked where he heard the laptop.

“What’s this then?” he prompted. Lenora faced the screen at him.

“Egg hatching! See?”

“... _Dearest_...”

Lenora thought for a second before giving a loud “Oh!” in realization, and blushed when her husband filled the living room with his amused laughter.

**Flowers**

The one thing that did not differ from their old home was their bed-nest. Dictatious made sure of that. There was no other way he would be able to snuggle and carefully hold his half-sleeping wife the way he liked otherwise.

“Do you know what you smell like to me, my dearest?”

Lenora let some air out of her nose in an almost-laugh.

“Flowers.” she mumbled softly. Dictatious drew her in closer to his form and caressed her head with his face and nose.

“Dew-drenched flowers, under the moonlight, the earth soft with life.”

“Know what you smell like?” Lenora said a little more coherently now. Dictatious perked up a little in curiosity.

“Oh?”

“Like a mossy rock. With mud on it.”

Dictatious frowned. “That doesn’t sound very handsome to me!”

“It is to me.” Lenora said, clumsily rolling over to share a kiss before they both drifted back into sleep.


	18. An Egg-nouncement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Becoming parents means finding a new foothold in their reality, and even the worse reactions to their new life is not enough to dampen Dictatious and Lenora's spirit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> crappy pun is crappy, ur welcome. 
> 
> Prompts for this chapter (based on pregnancy journaling prompts): _1) The way you broke the news. 1) The way you felt when you realized you were going to have a baby. 3) How did other people react?_
> 
> Also, I never really mentioned it before since it was never really a part of any of the previous prompts/story ideas, but I headcanon that Lenora struggles with menstrual problems that make her generally infertile (hence why she got a cat so early in her marriage). That plus Dictatious being real freaking old, and they kinda assumed that pregnancy was not very likely, though marginally possible. Infertility is mentioned only once in the very end as a passing comment, but in case that is triggering for anyone: here is your warning.

The phone call with Blinkous had been…eventful. After swearing him and Merlin to secrecy about the eggs, Dictatious hung up and felt much better. As much as it hurt his ego to say so, speaking with him always gave him a much more level outlook.

Though, telling everyone else was…also eventual. Having Merlin visit Arcadia Oaks was no small event, and it had the whole town buzzing with “why?”. Lenora and Dictatious, intelligent and cunning as they were, began to feel wore down with the questions on the first and only day of his homecoming.

After taking one look into their salty tub of water that made up their nest, Merlin ordered them to make an actual aquarium, gave specifics, and then left. Luckily, Javier Nunez was much more helpful, and quickly rounded up supplies to handmake the tank himself. Ophelia was practically squealing when they first heard the news before coming over.

“You’re a mom! Oh my gosh, there is SO much we have to go over.” the councilwoman insisted. Goodhearted as she was, Lenora was certain that Ophelia would burst if she could not share the good news. So, a quick announcement was printed out with a picture of the eggs in their new home, and mailed out to friends and relatives.

Barbara and Walt found out right away, and having had to handle the Cradlestone full of human babies themselves, seemed eager to see new babies that were not their responsibility. Inviting them over for some coffee and brunch, the two oohed and awed over the fish-like eggs, and gave flowers to the new mother along with congratulations.

Dictatious merely sat by the tank proudly: after the news of it sank in a little more, the troll became smug with pride and affection, rather than terror, over the prospect of fathering and furthering the Galadrigal line. Not having to fuss over a pregnant wife and not having to do much to care for the eggs certainly helped in that endeavor.

Nancy Domzalski also stopped by with Aarrrgghh!!! as her companion, to take a peak over the “mer-babies.” Dictatious snapped angrily when the Krubera tried to dip his nose into the water to sniff the eggs, but otherwise the visit was pleasant and endearing.

Many more gave their well-wishes through text or over phone calls, Jim surprisingly open to the idea of having “cousins” to call family. That warmed Lenora’s heart the most.

But she also found herself checking her phone often, waiting for a call from her mother or father.

They never did call.

“You did send it in mail, dearest. Perhaps they haven’t gotten it yet.” Dictatious lamely tried to suggest. Normally he did not hide his frustrations concerning his in-laws, and only did so when he knew it could upset his wife. But Lenora was furious in her own right.

“I thought they were beginning to accept you now! And my merwoman half! It’s like they can’t stand me anymore!”

“Even if that were true, the little ones still have us, and many others, to call family.” Dictatious stated proudly. “They are Galadrigals, and Galadrigals walk a steady line no matter the adversary challenging them!”

Lenora hugged herself a little and leaned into his chest. “But they’re my parents. They’re _grand_ parents. We shouldn’t _have_ to fight my own flesh and blood on this.”

“And you don’t have to. If Edith and David choose to sit out on their lives, that is their own loss to suffer.” Dictatious said matter-of-factually. Then after a moment of hugging, he muttered bashfully, “Is it possible, dearest, that I love you even more than I have before? All this talk of whelps is making me soft.”

She giggled that sweet giggle he never tired of hearing, and said, “You’re married to a mermaid who thought she was infertile, yet gave you four children all at once. _Anything_ is possible.”

An egg rolled slightly in the wide, deep, ocean-esque tank, and they turned to view and listen to their little brood, respectively. The love between them all was more than enough.


	19. Jim The Eggsitter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jim bonds with his little cousins, only to find out why Dictatious is so overprotective of them -- and while he shares some words of wisdom, Dictatious feels less at peace with his new life than ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yo I did NOT mean to make this chapter so bittersweet/sad...it was SUPPOSED to be baby fluff. Ah well. 
> 
> No prompts, just my own lonely ideas. I had this almost finished the other day, hence why I am posting this the literal day after my last update lol. Sorry for the spam.

“They look like lil Dragon Balls!” Toby cooed, taking a picture of the aquarium-esque nest on his phone. it was half true: they were dark orange and had a shining glow to them, but they were also semi-transparent. The light coming from the fragments of Heartstone within the chamber was enough to give them a glimpse into the gestating forms within. One could clearly see the outline of a troll-like body, with trollish tails and four arms with two legs. If it weren’t for the fact that they were growing in finfolk egg sacs, and in need of seawater to properly grow, Jim would have never guessed that they were half-sea creatures.

Claire gasped when one of the eggs wriggled a few inches, and bounced lightly on the sand.

“Jim, did you see that? It wriggled its butt at me!”

“You guys really like babies.” Jim said with a half-grin.

“C’mon dude, these are your baby _cousins_. How can I _not_ love them?”

Claire gasped again, watching as two eggs bopped into one another. “Their first fight! Quick, get a video!”

“Is everything alright?” Lenora asked, coming out of her room and dressed to the nines. She wore a long black dress with sleeves, and distinctive trollish jewelry in her pinned up hair.

“Nah, it’s fine.” Jim assured, his sharp eyes glancing back to the tank as another egg made a move. “I didn’t think they were so active.”

Lenora smiled fondly at her yet-to-be-hatched children as she put in an earring. “I wouldn’t worry about it, it’s not like they can get out. But leaving them all alone just doesn’t feel right to me.”

“We gotcha covered, Ms. G.” Toby assured. He didn’t even look at her, he was too into taking a video. “You should be happy you’re getting free babysitting AND photography done just for the price of take out.”

Before Lenora could respond in jest, Dictatious came hurrying out of the room as well, donning a much nicer version of a jacket he once wore long ago to their first date. To everyone’s amusement, however, the blazing orange tie was the same. Jim guessed it made it easier to find him in the dark.

“Stay at least one feet from the glass!” the troll demanded, hands out as he sniffed his way towards the smell of sand and sea water. Dictatious lightly touched the tank, and the sound of stone tapping glass caused all eggs to bounce in response. One even looked to roll towards his direction.

“There you are my lovelies.” he cooed with a smile. Feeling their vibrations on the container walls never failed to make his heart swell. Then, almost as if he had his sight back, Dictatious glared right at Jim.

“If I come back and they have so much as a _single scratch_ –”

“It’s _fine_ , Max. The Trollhunter should be able to handle it.” Lenora corrected rather strongly. This caused Jim to shuffle his feet a bit. He certainly did not feel very close to his “uncle”, despite he and Blinky making a recent effort to reconnect, and felt bad whenever Lenora stepped in to correct either Dictatious or Jim when they got snappy.

“Hey, guys, _relax._ Enjoy yourselves! Only got so many days until babydom comes crashing in on you guys.” Toby said, now with his phone back in his pocket. “Go out and adventure! Or whatever it is you lovebirds call it.”

They did leave, much to Jim’s relief. It was more or less pleasant to hang around – they had the TV to themselves (nothing scary or inappropriate, lest it scarred the little ones in the room), and enough cash from Lenora to buy a triple meatza. Just as they received their order, there was a call from Dictatious. Jim rose his brows and answered.

“Yes?”

“Put the video chat on, I need to check on them.”

“Oh, I can send a pic if you like.” Jim offered awkwardly. Just as Dictatious began to argue, he heard Lenora in the background.

“Dictatious Maximus! I told you not to bother them!”

“But dearest–!”

And then the phone hung up. Jim shrugged it off and went about eating the cardboard box the pizza came in. Occasionally, while watching their movie, Jim would glance over at the tank, content enough to see his “cousins” meandering about peacefully. He finished his meal, and his phone pinged this time – another contact from Dictatious.

 **Druncle Dick:** are any of the little ones lonely

Jim looked over again. Indeed – one egg began moving towards the glass wall and bumped into it over and over again. He took a picture and sent it.

 **Jim:** like this?

 **Druncle Dick:** yes please keep her company

Her? Alright then. Jim wasn’t going to question how he would know that, but he was the babysitter and did as he was asked. Claire watched him from the corner of her eye as he got up and made his way to the nesting tank. When he put his large blue claw onto the glass, the egg immediately tapped back, as if in a game.

“Aw, it likes you.” Claire said with a giggle. Jim smiled.

“It’s a she, apparently. She wants to hang out.”

“Rad!” Toby said, taking out his phone for another round of photos. This went on for a while, as the eggs eventually all took turns to meet and greet their kin. Dictatious demanded photo evidence of their wellness, and Toby was more than happy to provide it. By the time the date ended hours later, the proud father had a stock pile of home videos and memorable photos on his phone. It only just then occurred to Jim that Dictatious wouldn’t have been able to see any of it.

Just as Claire and Toby slipped out, speaking with Lenora for a bit outside their door, Jim stopped Dictatious.

“So did…did she look at the photos with you?”

Jim had no idea what to call his former-teacher-now-aunt, but the awkwardness did not bother Dictatious; he merely chuckled, loosening his tie.

“Yes, of course, though I played it off as you lot sending in updates unprompted.” He then sighed and placed the tie into his side pocket. “I won’t pretend that we like one another very much, if at all. But stepping in to help them does give me a sense of peace when I am away.”

“Oh.” Jim blinked in surprise. Not much else was verbally spoken in that moment, as it quickly turned to olfactory communication – something Jim was used to by now thanks to living in New Trollmarket. Jim gave a sharp sense of confusion through a scent of something sweet and sour, while Dictatious hummed solemnly in…shame? The scent certainly matched it – it was submissive and weak. That surprised Jim. Dictatious responded by carefully walking to the tank and laying both of his top hands against it.

Finally, Jim spoke in realization.

“You’re scared that you don’t deserve them.”

Dictatious snorted. “ _Of course_ I don’t deserve them. I hardly deserve Lenora, or a second chance at life, much less an exile from all of trollkind, in place of execution for treason.”

A reflection of his face in the aquatic tank showed Jim the depth of his fear, even if his voice was even. “Deep down, I know that if any harm were to come to them, it would be my punishment, not their own.”

A sharp laughter from outside the door filled the silence between them. Dictatious rested his head against the glass.

“Blinky told me, about what you probably went through.” Jim tried to console. “…You were really brainwashed?”

“That’s one way of putting it.” Dictatious said sourly. Jim sighed.

“Look, I just…I was just trying to say…maybe you did make some bad choices. A lot of them. But you were trying to survive the unthinkable. A lot of people in Gunmar’s war were just trying to survive, and they regret it too.”

Rocky green shoulders drooped a little. An egg rolled a bit while the whelp inside of it dreamed in its sleep.

“It’s okay to regret.” Jim told him, throwing up his hoodie to cover his face in the night. “But it’s okay to forgive yourself too. I know more than anyone.”

Jim left without another word – not that he had to say anything else. Dictatious let out a ragged breath as he imagined how peaceful his children must have looked in their little nest.

Lenora could forgive Dictatious, the town could forgive him: even Blinkous may soften to his once-treacherous brother. But regardless of what others could forgive, Fate _never_ forgot.

And that terrified him.


	20. A Rune For A Blessing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dictatious’s fear of cosmic suffering makes it’s way to Lenora, and she confronts him to get the facts straight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> what do you do when you feel bad for making an angsty drabble? You write a hurt/comfort piece to make up for it, of course!
> 
> No prompt, just a continuation of the last chapter. :) I wasn't planning to upload anything until the weekend to give y'all a breather but a fan on tumblr was all like "please?" and??? how can I say no???

Dictatious made plans to strangle the Trollhunter, if his sorry rumpus ever made its way back to Arcadia Oaks. The damned boy told Lenora _everything_.

“I understand your fear, but I don’t want that fear overruling your senses!” Lenora pressed upon him. They stood away from the tank, where the egg-babies rolled about on the sand inside without a care in the world. “Honestly, the idea of “Fate” punishing people, even when they repent – it’s ridiculous.”

“Easy for _you_ to say, my dear. Repentence does not exist in trolldom!” Dictatious argued as he continued placing the runes about their living quarters. Lenora grabbed his arm just as he went to place down another.

“For the record, you’re _exiled_ from trolldom in the first place.” Lenora said. “If you are so worried anyway, what will runes do about it?”

That was not something Dictatious could answer; so, he growled instead and continued his rune work. “I don’t expect you to understand.”

“You’re right. I _don’t_ understand.”

At her admittance, Dictatious perked an ear and turned towards her. Lenora walked to him again and wrapped her arms around his back.

“I don’t understand cruelty, and unfair punishment, or any other thing that you trolls seem to hold in high regard.” she told him firmly. “I don’t understand it, not because it doesn’t make sense, but because I refuse to see how it is just. It is _un_ just.”

“So then? How do you plan to avoid my unjust punishment from the Fates?”

This was a spiteful challenge, but Lenora heard the panic at the edge of his voice. She answered as any charitable wife would.

“Suffering exists in this world whether the so-called Fates are after us or not. But, I can tell you this, Max: that I love you, and will always stay by your side, whatever comes our way.”

The last of his runes remained in his hands, though Dictatious did soften up enough to lower his head to meet hers. He chuffed in defeat.

“How dare you make me feel better?”

Lenora kissed his nose. “Because the truth does that, when you are ready to hear it. And I have a feeling you were in desperate need of it.”

Dictatious grinned, touching noses with his wife, before stepping back again. “Will you still allow me to place my runes, at least?”

“Only if you let me sprinkle some holy water around here.” Lenora offered, looking towards the bottle she always kept on the fireplace mantle. “You have your protections, and I have mine.”

“Striking a deal, I see.” Dictatious huffed in pretend offense. The placement of his magical artifacts continued. “I’ve taught you too well.”

“You’ve taught me to never give up.” she said, much more softly now. After they finished, the Galadrigals gathered about the tank, and soaked up every precious, peaceful minute they had with their miraculous children; turning in for the night afterwards felt just as well.


	21. Lenora in Troll-Land

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 14 year old run-away Lenora Janeth and recently-escaped-from-Troll-Hell Dictatious Galadrigal crossroads in Arcadia’s forest, each of them escaping from a life they no longer want. Perhaps two misfits get along better than they would think.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An age difference prompt -- NOT romantic, obviously, but very much a "oddball pair of friends" kind of thing. Just an AU of a “what if”, had Dictatious and Lenora met when she was younger. A lot more sassy, I imagine. I felt like doing something different to offer variety other than the baby fluff/drama.

Dictatious Maximus Galadrigal was a proud troll, but not necessarily proud of the things he had done thus far in his life. He enjoyed his high status as a world-renown historian and author, as well as companion and advisor to the late Trollhunter, Deya.

But discarding all of that for allegiance to Lord Gunmar -- even if done out of desperation -- was something he ran away from now.

The woods here -- in a place called “California” he assumed -- were thick enough for him to run off even in the daylight. So long as he stuck to the shadows he would not burn to a crisp. 

Though _bleeding to death_ was still a problem. Crossing the experimental barrier worked well enough in that Dictatious escaped the Darklands, but also badly enough so that it hurt worse than being swallowed by a nyarlograth.

Yes, he _had_ experienced such an unfortunate happenstance.

By then he was exhausted, weak, and thirsty. Dictatious took one last, long swig of water from his leather canteen before stumbling to his knees before a creek to refill it. The boulders and foliage around him would make for a decent rest stop until he regained his strength; the creek too smelled of fish, and would give him food once he bothered to set up a trap for it.

The scent of a human girl approaching hit his nostrils but Dictatious did not process nor notice it. The flare for basic survival overwhelmed everything else.

So when he finally brought up his head and saw a white-faced, bug-eyed, adolescent girl staring at him in horror, the two shared a long, mutually-scared-to-death scream.

\----

Lenora Theresa Janeth was a happy girl, but not necessarily happy about her lot in life. She adored Shakespeare and other classics, and always checked out the latest book on mythology or fairy tales whenever the library had them. Stories of magic made her _feel_ magical.

But no one else saw magic in her life: only embarrassing childishness, and people seemed to adore reminding her of that fact.

All the heroes and heroines in her stories rushed off into the woods for grand adventures, _especially_ after certain people in their lives told them they couldn’t do anything. So, Lenora literally ran with the concept, and after telling her parents she was off for a Saturday trip to the library, made a run for it. Only her bag of clothes, camping essentials, and her favorite book of mythology lay on her person, and the thought of living on the road gave the daydreamer a sense of euphoria.

Her mother would not notice Lenora’s absence for a long, long time. It was not unusual for the girl to stay at the library until the sun set, after the librarian would quietly shoo her away. So, she had almost twelve hours of certain freedom to make as much ground as she could. Arcadia’s forest was a great place to start, and so far: Lenora reveled in it.

The sound of a desperate troll guzzling water and mumbling gibberish to himself hit her ears but Lenora did not process nor notice it. The high of her foolish quest overwhelmed everything else.

So when she finally came across a creek and brought up her head to find a seven foot, green, bleeding troll staring at her with those giant tusks for teeth, the two shared a long, mutually-scared-to-death scream.

And strangely enough -- her scream became a scream of delight.

“Oh my gosh! You’re real! This is real!” Lenora practically squealed as she jumped up and down. Immediately she skipped across the creek on some protruding rocks to approach him, and Dictatious scattered backwords in confusion. Lenora was about to hound him with more exclamations and burning questions, but noticed him wince and grunt, one of his four hands pressing to his chest.

A very bloody chest, with cracks throughout.

Lenora gasped and went to her knees in front of him. “I’m so sorry! You’re hurt! Here, I have a first aid kit.”

She then went about throwing her bag on the ground, opening it, and taking out the kit. Dictatious, growing faint from blood loss, could only lean back against the boulders and watch in light-headed confusion.

“Stay away.” he tried to warn with a snarl. Lenora scoffed at him and took out padding and some gauze.

“You’re bleeding to death, mister. I’m helping you.”

Dictatious figured if he could not scare off a human fleshwhelp, then he probably deserved to die by her hands if that were her intention. But, it was not: instead, the girl put pressure on his bizarre wound, and used up all the gauze she had to tightly wrap it around his chest. The bleeding stopping almost immediately, though he was still weak.

After a moment looking at her handiwork, Dictatious said sternly, “You’re a silly creature for helping me. You do not even know my purpose here.”

“So? Tell me then.” she said while haughtily patting her thick, curly hair, as if she were an offended lady. “I think you owe it to me since I helped out. I didn’t _have_ to, you know.”

Dictatious growled and chuffed out his nose, and feeling stronger with his wound attended to, the sounds came out stronger too. Enough to make Lenora jump where she sat. He chuckled darkly.

“You’re useful to me now, child, but don’t let that get to your head. There are darker and more dangerous things out there besides myself.”

Lenora looked sheepish, but not sheepish enough to avoid getting a good look at him. She adjusted her glasses and carefully looked over the chisel marks that covered his body like tattoos, six amber eyes, and wild hair with two horns tucked within. Two grey streaks in the wild hair gave away his biological age. She offered a sympathetic smile now, a hand reached outwards in greeting.

“Maybe we should introduce ourselves.” Lenora said, trying to sound mature. “I’m Lenora Janeth.”

Dictatious eyed the little hand carefully, before awkwardly taking it with his four-fingered stone one. Lenora inwardly exclaimed in delight; it wasn’t every day you met a magical creature like this.

“So what’s your name? Are you a golem? Or Sasquatch?”

“I’m a troll.” he deadpanned. She made another annoyingly excited giggle so he continued just to talk over it. “And my name is Dictatious Maximus Galadrigal.”

Lenora stopped her giggling, and blinked. “Diction...Dictapous...”

“Dictatious”

“Dictatious Max...Maximus?...”

“Yes, that’s it.”

“Gal...Galadriel? Like from _Lord of the Rings_?”

He breathed inwardly through his nose, summoning patience. “No. Galadri _gal._ I don’t even know what this ‘Lord of the Rings’ is.”

“It’s only THE grandfather of ALL modern day high fantasy!” Lenora said with a shocked gasp. “I left all my copies at home, but I know the plot by heart! I personally prefer _The Hobbit_ , but I think you’d like all of them, Max.”

“What did you just call me?” Dictatious demanded. He had sat up a little bit, his lower set of hands working with fallen branches to set up his fish trap. Lenora blushed a little, worried she insulted him, and answered rather politely for once.

“Max. You know, short for Maximus.” she explained. “I always give my friends nicknames...at least when I had friends.”

 _She’s pulling the pity party platter, don’t fall for it!_ Dictatious told himself sternly. Not that it did any good: her bright blue eyes quivered in shy humility, and it tore right to the center of his ego. Eventually he caved in, sighed, and nodded.

“It’s...you’re fine, really, don’t start crying.” Dictatious ordered. Lenora sniffed a little and nodded.

“Sorry, it’s been a long week for me.” she admitted. She then looked down at his handiwork and back up at him with a smile. “If you’re hungry, I have some food on me. Then we can fish tomorrow on a full stomach.”

Dictatious winced at that. He did _not_ want to be slowed down by some fleshbag tag-a-long: no matter how endearing her eyes could convince him otherwise.

But -- and this was a very strong, guilt-clenching ‘but’ -- this Lenora had proven herself useful already with her apparent healing abilities, and looked eager enough to work and help him. She had yet to prove herself a burden.

With a civil enough grin, Dictatious said, “If you don’t mind, I would love something to sup on.”

“I hope you like it! I took the whole chicken pot pie from the freezer this morning.” Lenora said, pulling it out of her bag now. Dictatious practically salivated at the scent of cooked bird flesh, realizing how little he actually had in terms of palatable cuisine in the Darklands.

Perhaps Lenora could be of use to him after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry not sorry, but that “make sad eyes at a Galadrigal” was stolen from Ep 14 of Part 1, where Claire works her magic on Blinky. If ur decent looking and bat your eyes just right, you can make a troll do anything for you, I guess.


	22. Happy Hatch Day!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> BABY FLUFF! BABY FLUFF! BABY FLUFF!

Of course it all happened during Lenora’s “bath time.”

The tub was watery and salty, with some seaweed thrown in for good measure, and she dipped under the water with a sigh. The end of her tail hung over the side, as did her Rapunzel-esque hair, but Lenora likened it to a small child badly curling up in a cupboard with a favorite blanket – closed-in in a cozy way, and more practically stable than it looked.

Sometimes she would stare off into the ripples of light through the water, imagining herself at the actual Pacific Ocean. Other times, she simply closed them for a nap. Or even both in the same time span. It was easy to fall into a restful sleep as one felt surrounded in warm water and ethereal sights.

At least, until a certain someone came half-stumbling, half-stomping, into the bathroom. Lenora shot up to ask what was the matter, until Dictatious blurted out the news in frantic glee.

“They’re hatching!”

Lenora was so excited by the exclamation that she fell out of the tub still in her finfolk form. She even army crawled part way out of the bathroom before realizing she still had legs. One transformation and a bathrobe later, and Lenora rushed towards the tank where – indeed – they were all wriggling free.

“I’m shooting the right way, aren’t I?” Dictatious asked, holding out a phone. Lenora laughed.

“Yes, you are! You want me to narrate, dear?”

“ _Please!_ ”

Lenora watched closely. All of them were as long as half a forearm now, and as wide as a cat. They struggled against their jelly-like eggshells with rambunctious wiggles.

“The biggest one is taking his time.” Lenora began. “What a sweetheart, I bet he’ll be our couch potato. Oh! And the little one has a foot out!”

“Her little foot!” Dictatious blurted out, on the verge of tears. And just like that, another foot tore out and two little trunk-like feet began pushing around in the water, the tail following them soon after. Just as the little one – definitely a girl, Lenora saw – broke free, another couple of feet elsewhere broke free. He quickly mimicked his sister and the two of them were out of their shells completely.

All of this was narrated of course, Dictatious bouncing from one foot to another as the brother and sister bobbed up to the edge of the tank to make little squawks.

“There you are little ones!” Dictatious said breathlessly. He set the phone down to continue recording, and grabbed the two of them to hold out. Lenora grabbed the nearby basket lined with a quilt to set them in. The two siblings squawked and purred and chirped at their parents, as if telling them all about themselves.

Just then, another brother appeared head first from his egg, with an arm out. Lenora, petting the ones already out, described the “birth” to Dictatious until he, too, finally made it to the surface.

“Welcome home, sonny! There you are.” Dictatious cooed, setting him with the other two. Lenora then anxiously watched the last boy – the biggest and roundest of the three – slowly but surely make his way out. Instead of swimming, he let himself float to the surface of the water, turned over to float on his back, and began snoring.

“Oh goodness, a couch potato indeed.” Lenora giggled, gently picking him up to place in the basket. All four of them were together now, and it stopped her heart with how perfect they were.

“What do they look like, darling?” Dictatious demanded eagerly as he gently caressed each one with a respective hand.

“They have my hair, and eyes, I think. Sea green and blue stone skin, some golden scaling on their tails and feet -- four arms each. And very slippery.”

He chuckled. “I can feel that. Go on!”

“They…oh, they have four eyes, not six.” Lenora laughed. “We both lost our bets it seems.”

“Drat. I was really hoping for a new radio.” Dictatious furrowed. Fingers grazed over the sleeping, closed eyes of the big whelp. His siblings all continued to make noise and chat and climb over one another. Neither said anything for a long while after that; every bit of their attention was glued to their freshly born babies, loud and happy and loving. Lenora sniffed a little, huddling the basket close to her and giving each one a kiss. Her husband went behind her to hug her, and rest his nose on the back of her neck.

Eventually, Dictatious spoke up to say, “Should we name them, yet?”

“Not yet.” Lenora answered. “I want to get to know them first. After that, I think we’ll know their names.”

The big one finally woke back up, and with a lazy smile, rolled onto his stomach to crawl and step over the others towards his father. This caused the only girl of the four to chirp angrily and naw on his tail – not that he even seemed to notice or care. The new parents laughed and sat down to let them explore.

Each of them grabbed two, and would let the whelps roam about their laps to make noise, play, and even groom their parents and each other. As if by instinct, Lenora switched back into a merwoman, which caused the children to happily squawk even more loudly and get riled up at the scent of a fellow sea creature.

 _Mommy has a tail!_ they seemed to yell out in their babble talk. Dictatious grinned in pride as he leaned back into the couch where they sat all together.

“When shall we call the others?” he asked. Lenora snorted.

“Never. Once the world knows about how cute they are, they’ll never leave them to ourselves!”

So the phone’s video was paused and saved for another day. It was a good enough answer for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the record -- the big baby boy is not gonna be the character that gets fat jokes dumped on him. He's just like...big. He's gonna be nine-ten feet tall at least. Big honkabolooga tonka baby boy. But also more interested in staring at pretty rocks than play fighting with other whelps. They will be named in another chapter. I also plan to do Jantatious centered prompts soon because, like I said, I don't want it to be too focused on the babies. If there is anything y'all wanna see, comment below!


	23. Random Fluff is the Best Fluff

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just a few short fluff drabbles based on some prompts from The Fake Redhead that I found. I have other prompts I want to work on but I really liked how these ones turned out!

**Prompt 1**

“How did those little rapscallions manage to lock themselves in anyway?” Lenora huffed, going through her travel bag of toiletries. Make-up was pushed to the side as she dug for her hair products at the bottom.

Dictatious cleared his throat and sheepishly answered, “I was...napping, with them of course, but I suppose they all awoke before I had.”

Happy squeals and splashes continued. Being locked in the bathroom was not so bad if you could breathe underwater, she supposed.

“Aha! Just what I needed.” Lenora said with gusto. Several hair pins were held in one hand as her free one flattened a single one out. “Back in my more rebellious days, my parents were so desperate to keep me from running away that they always locked my door. But not only did I pick my way out every time, but I snuck into the library too!”

“You don’t strike me as a professional criminal.” Dictatious rumbled with amusement.

“We snuck into this very theater for our first date, Max, I thought you would know better by now.” Lenora snickered. Finally, the doorknob clicked and immediately both parents rushed in.

Samuel -- their biggest and youngest boy -- floated face down in a nearly-overflowing tub of salt water. Dictatious swooped him up in an instant before turning off the bath faucet. Lenora grabbed Lorelei and Jeremiah by the scruff in each hand, ripping them off of the window curtains as the two of them squawked and cried in protest.

Dictatious, maneuvering Sam to his lower set of arms, sniffed out his eldest son -- Publius Maximus -- who sat perfectly content and quiet in the sink, happy enough to watch his troublesome siblings go at it.

“Max Junior, you are an angel among hellions.” he said with a smirk, holding him carefully in his upper arms. Max Junior squawked, but more in the manner of conversation rather than protest.

Lenora held out Lorelei and Jeremiah. “So, what of these offenders? I think they’re the ones getting the whole troop into mischief.”

“Indeed!” Dictatious said almost too proudly. He sniffed his way towards the other two of his offspring and chuffed at them both. “I say we severely punish them with a warm blanket, fresh baked salmon, and a shopping trip with Papa to the hardware store.”

Lenora smiled and helped them and Dictatious out of the bathroom. “They’re lucky they’re cute.”

“Too lucky. They’ll be the death of me.” Dictatious replied, though fondly. Warm blankets and dinner it was, and Dictatious quietly left the studio after the Galadrigal guppies cuddled up on their mother.

\----

**Prompt 2**

For once the guppies were napping, which probably explained why Dictatious used this time to take out all the gift supplies from their closet and dump them on the floor. Lenora laid out lazily on the couch, enjoying her earl gray tea and literary magazine, and watched her husband in great amusement. He struggled with the tape for a bit, but otherwise managed.

“You know this passive aggressive birthday gift war is getting ridiculous, right?”

“Oh hush up and help me wrap this giant stuffed panda.”

“It’s a polar bear.”

“All land creatures are the same, aren’t they?”

They most certainly were not, but Lenora knew well enough to let it be. She sipped more of her tea before commenting, “I still say Blinkous gave you birthday greetings out of kindness, not malice. Though I’m sure he’ll enjoy the stuffed toy regardless.”

Dictatious chuckled darkly, as if evil places were carefully falling into place. “He shall! And he will love it so much, he’ll feel terrible for wishing me salutations at all on my birthing day!”

Lenora sighed and her eyes went back towards her magazine. “Of course, Max dear.”

\----

**Prompt 3**

The prima donna was demanding better stage lights. A hairdresser was adamant that she get a raise despite being fired two days ago. And, of course, a slew of angry parents were there to voice displeasure at their precious children not making the cut for this or that role.

Lenora sat up straight and lady like as always -- her mother taught her better than to show any kind of uncouth responses to heathens. That didn’t mean she wasn’t cussing out every single person in her head, of course.

Her phone quietly pinged. Sure enough, Dictatious sent a text; not surprising as the theater group meet was running late, as always.

 **Max:** how are things

 **Lenora:** Everyone is acting as if I or the director owe them some kind of service, of which neither of us can provide nor wish to anyway.

Lenora paused, before quickly adding:

 **Lenora:** I want to stab everyone.

 **Max:** don’t get blood on your dress we have dinner reservations at seven

The director shared a look with Lenora when she snorted, a failed attempt to mask her laughter. She cleared her through throat and focused back on texting.

 **Lenora:** Love you for enabling me!

 **Max:** love you too

The madness in the meeting ensued, but Lenora was at peace with it. They were the ones going home with hot heads and unfulfilled wishes: but Mrs. Galadrigal had a mister to make everything right again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to mention it last time, but for those curious -- Dictatious will make texts using a speaking feature that a lot of phones have now. Like, "Siri, text so and so [speak message hear]". because Dictatious can't see or feel what he is "writing", he can't go back and make grammar edits, hence the run on sentences.
> 
> Oh and I hope y'all like the names I gave to the kids lol. Publius is gonna have a lot of fun at the playground. I figured the name "Maximus" was a traditional name given to elder or first born sons in the Galadrigal line, or for their troll tribe in general.


	24. Opal and Jade and Gold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Being blind doesn’t stop Dictatious from making the perfect proposal for soon to be Mrs. Lenora Galadrigal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dammit I need to write more steamy kissing scenes for them! This isn't it but it makes me want to write more kissing prompts lmao
> 
> I really wanted to do a chapter on their engagement, but for prompts I had to search through proposal ideas online lol. 
> 
> _Prompt: Find the bookmark in the book she is currently reading, and replace the page with a simple message._

The pile of flat, smooth paper was useless to Dictatious, but Toby handed the packet over to him anyway.

“I went through, like, twenty different websites, and collected all the best proposal ideas.” The boy explained with surety. “It’s even color coded: blue ones relate to literature, yellow is related to theater, red ones are more romantic, and green is outdoor ideas.”

“Already made ring?” Aarrrgghh!!! asked with interest. Dictatious grumbled under his breath at how nosy everyone was, and procured a pure gold band with a sparkling opal -- carved like a rose -- in its center. Little flower-like shapes of jade surrounded it. 

Dictatious put it back into the pocket on his trousers. “I assume you have a preferred proposal idea then? Lenora _detests_ surprises with a crowd watching.”

“Hm, gotta scratch out the outdoor ones then.” Toby said as he took the paper back and flipped through. “Uh, what about filling up her place with balloons?”

“And clean up afterwards? No thank you.”

Toby weakly chuckled. “Well that gets rid of a bunch of other ideas, if you count rose petals and confetti. Gosh, what WOULD she like? Miss Janeth loves anything fancy, right? What about a romantic dinner?”

“I’m an abysmal cook and I haven’t the money to order out a proper dinner for such an occasion as a proposal.” Dictatious admitted sheepishly. “Are you sure there is something I can do in that list? Something straightforward and simple, but thoughtful?”

Aarrrgghh!!! gave a thoughtful grunt. “Like a book.”

“He’s not proposing with a book, Wingman.” Toby grinned. But Dictatious’s white eyes widened.

“The Krubera speaks truth! That woman is always reading something!” The old troll grew a sly smile, and added, “And I know the exact book for the job!”

Luckily, Dictatious had the key to Lenora’s apartment -- they did not live together, but they did enjoy one another’s company so much, that he practically considered the place a second home. As such, no one thought anything of their bizarre troll neighbor walking into her place with two members of the trollhunting team.

It was still _strange_ , but nothing they haven’t seen before.

“So this one?” Toby asked as he pulled out a book from the shelf. It was a leather bound one, gold lettering on its title. Dictatious felt the ridges and smiled.

“That’s the ticket, boy! Now, for the ring --”

Just then, all three of them froze, their heads turning to where the door was opened. Lenora walked in, kicking her shoes off and dumping her bag and shawl by the coat hanger; Dictatious swore he could hear everyone’s heartbeat along with his own.

“Max! I’m home! The meeting ended earlier than I th--”

“OUT!” All three of them shouted frantically. Lenora screamed, Dictatious screamed, Aarrrgghh!!! panicked and rushed out the door with the collar of Toby’s shirt in his mouth. He knocked over a lamp and a few picture frames in the process of going out the door. Lenora sputtered and slammed the door shut.

“What on earth was that about!”

“Dearest, I know you said no visitors, but--”

“But nothing! I was terrified!”

Dictatious, argumentative as he was, also knew that, at least, Lenora remained ignorant about his surprise proposal. He took in a deep breath, checked his temper, and gripped the book behind his back.

“I give my deepest apologies, my dear. It was not my intent to break your boundaries nor to disrespect you. Perhaps you should sit down and relax, while I make you a cup of tea. I shall explain it all to you shortly.”

There was a scoff, and padded footsteps walking over to the couch. “Fine. But you better have a good reason for this silliness! I’ve had a long day as is.”

That was all Dictatious needed. He huddled over the counter in the kitchen, carefully tying the ring to the ribbon book mark sewn into the collector’s book. As he snugged it into place along with slipping a pre-made note into the book, he already poured hot water over tea leaves with his upper set of hands. Though he still clanked against things here and there, it was a fluid process that allowed him to return to Lenora just a few moments later.

The phone pinged with a text, but Dictatious didn’t dare open it now, not where Lenora could hear it. He had no idea if Toby would expose him by text-to-speech. One of his hands shut it off to prevent further interruptions.

Lenora’s agitation smelled bitter, but was not as strong as before. The ring -- still on it’s end of the ribbon -- was carefully hidden behind the book as he handed it and the tea cup to her.

“For your pleasure, darling.” Dictatious said to her. Lenora rose a brow but said nothing, sipping her tea.

“Spoiling me isn’t an explanation...but I do enjoy it.” she admitted. “So, what harebrained scheme were you plotting this time?”

“Perhaps, as always, the answer lies in a book.”

The tea was set down. “Oh?”

“You were on the love section for Emily Bronte’s collection.” Dictatious said, more gentle now, and laying a hand on her leg. “Open it, love.”

That was unexpected. Blushing, Lenora did as she was asked, not noticing the ring at first when she opened to her marked page. The note, written in golden calligraphy clearly traced over pencil, it read: _Will you marry me?_

Breath sharply inhaled through her nose, and only then did she realize that something was dangling from her ribbon bookmark. Lenora pulled the ring up and tugged it off gently, taking in its sparkle and shine with a gasp.

“ _Max._ ” she hardly breathed out. The book fell forgotten, onto the floor. Dictatious held her cupped hands in his as his other pair brought in her by the waist.

“Saying my name isn’t an answer.” Dictatious said coyly. Lenora laughed and shoved her face against his neck, her entire upper body flushing with warmth from what was happening.

“Of course I'll marry you! How can I tell you no?!”

“If you can’t say anything, then we can kiss about it.” he suggested. Lenora did so with gusto, pressing her lips long and hard against his as it deepened a little. They paused a little bit, long enough for Lenora to slip the ring on her finger and face him again.

“You’re going to drive me mad, aren’t you?” she said, rubbing her nose against his playfully. Dictatious hummed with agreement, pulling her in for another kiss.

“It’s only fair I return the favor, is it not?”

It was more than fair, and the two reveled in it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some meaning behind the ring that Dictatious made:
> 
> Opal -- faithfulness, to repel evil and protect eyesight (haha)
> 
> Jade -- protection from evil, attract love, and bring good luck
> 
> Gold -- although not a stone and thus has no traditional meaning, gold was often sought after in ancient societies such as the Egyptians or Celts, since its inability to rust was reminiscent of immortality/the afterlife. So, the golden band here would not only pair well with the colors of the other stones, but it would also never tarnish, just as their marriage would also be long-lasting. And of course, it’s considered a luxury metal, and we all know how Dictatious loves to dote on Lenora.
> 
> The symbolism here isn’t overtly romantic, but it is loving and shows how much he cherishes Lenora and wants the best for her. It also alludes to his hidden fears of “Fate” punishing his deeds as a Gumm Gumm by attacking those he loves.


	25. Playing Doctor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life seems to settle down after the battle, and the trolls leave Arcadia to find a new home. But, Miss Janeth finds herself in a new adventure with one troll that stayed behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> from otpoc-prompts on tumblr: **A is a doctor at the local hospital. B is sick and comes in, getting assigned to doctor A. After talking to A, B finds out they like them, and starts coming in all the time just to see them.**
> 
> Originally I was going to make this where Miss Janeth is a school nurse and Dictatious is some kind of teacher of troll culture, but then I thought…what if Dictatious is that weird old blind healer that sets up camp at the hopsital because they're overstaffed and he's bored, and Miss Janeth goes to him all the time because she enjoys his company? I figured Miss Janeth would have her turn pursuing Dictatious, instead of the other way around as I usually do. :)

“Are you kidding me? An hour wait?! I’ve got a literal broken leg here!”

The nurse bit her lip, obviously feeling terrible for being the bearer of bad news. “I’m sorry, Miss Janeth, but you’re lower on the list because the paramedics already splintered your leg. Until the workload here lightens up –”

“Alright fleshbags! Who needs some healing?”

The voice was gravely but loud and demanding. To Lenora’s shock, it was a troll, one with six eyes and four arms, storming in with his walking stick as if he were on a mission – and he was. She then realized that she _had_ seen him before, in the background at a local party. How drunk was she to not remember _that?_

“You, come along then.” the troll ordered, a nurse hurriedly taking the wheelchair and pushing Lenora along.

“I’m sorry, but do you have a license to practice medicine?” Lenora demanded to know as she was rolled into a room. Blind eyes glared in her general direction as he felt around for the anti-bacterial soap.

“I’ve been re-attaching limbs and curing plagues since before the time of your grandmother’s grandmother.” he said with a huff. “Now hush, and let me examine you.”

The nurse did not seem at all bothered by this, and Lenora had learned to accept the trolls in Arcadia as trustworthy. Still, she was a patient. She had her rights, did she not?

“What is your name?” Lenora asked. A rocky finger lightly traced its way down her shin, and she winced a little. Thank goodness for pain meds.

“I am known as Dictatious Maximus Galadrigal.” he stated neutrally enough. “And you, my dear, should find something to bite down on.”

_”Excuse me?!”_

It was true – Lenora DID need something to bite down on, but it was not as arduous a process as she had feared. Whatever pain there was, was confined to a split second of crunching before all the bruising and broken bones healed away and her leg became normal once again. 

And all Dictatious did was pour some kind of shining liquid over her skin and tap her knee twice. It all vanished as soon as her leg healed.

“That…that’s amazing! Magical even!”

Dictatious smiled smugly. “It is magic, traditional medical arcana. Learned it while venturing through the jungles of what humans call the Congo. A group of river trolls often find themselves hurtling down waterways, naturally, so they perfected a method of–”

“Sir, we have more patients waiting.” The nurse reminded him. Dictatious grumbled at having lose an audience, but rolled up his kit and washed his hands again.

“Bring them in, then. Take it easy on that leg for at least a week!” he ordered as Lenora was wheeled out. It all had happened so quickly by the time she was signing her discharge papers, that Lenora surprised herself with feelings of disappointment.

Dictatious, while somewhat rude, had also been open to her questions and looked delighted to divulge to her whatever Lenora asked. She also found herself attracted to the kind of life he seemed to have lived, and Lenora could not get thoughts of the troll out of her head for the next week.

So, of course, Lenora “accidentally” sliced her palm. There was no guarantee that Dictatious would be her “doctor” again, but was elated all the same that it was so. Again she was taken into the room where he worked his magic and immediately began to strike a conversation.

“I’m sure you have something marvelous in store, Mr. Galadrigal.” Lenora stated. “You must have collected so much knowledge over the centuries.”

Dictatious smiled again – that smug smile that, for whatever reason, made Lenora’s heart beat a little faster. It faltered a little when he felt over the injury on her hand, but quickly regained it soon after. “Naturally, of course. I lived my life as a scholar and author, detailing the culture of my people. One learns a thing or two along the way.”

“It must have been fascinating.” Lenora sighed, recalling her own college days exploring the Welsh and English countryside. She briefly wondered if Dictatious had ever seen any of the ancient and prehistoric sightings there, but instead listened as he continued. Dictatious took his time with the ointment, and shared with her another tale of his life.

“For the most part, I suppose.” he admitted. “I can not lie to a lady, there were certainly times where days were spent holed up in an inn, writing away as much as I could so I would forget nothing – but ah! The adventures in between! It made the late nights worth it.”

From there, he recounted a specific scrape with a rogue fairy (much to Lenora’s delight) and how it lead him to discover and recount the ill-fated Fae War, as well as the ten runic properties of fairy dust. Dictatious was surprised that the fleshbag woman had listened so intently, that he purposefully drew on the appointment even longer (he had to bandage her up perfectly, of course!) to finish the tale properly.

Lenora took in his appearance, thinking Dictatious looked rather fetching in the oversized, crudely put-together doctor’s coat, and enjoying his impressively gigantic smile whenever it managed to grow. His tusks were uneven but that somehow added to his charm, his white streaks of hair on his otherwise dark-haired head also helping in that arena. She even had to stifle a giggle when she noticed three earrings pierced into his left ear – how punkish for someone his age, yet also so fitting.

“Thank you again, Mr. Galadrigal.” Lenora said once he finally finished. Her heart sank at having to go, but she left out the door anyway before he could give his own good byes. That night, the teacher screamed into a pillow and wondered how on earth she found herself falling in love with a troll.

Of _course_ she had to fake another injury to see him again! What else was she supposed to do? Invite him for coffee? Say, “Oh hi, I’m a patient of yours, but do you mind if I ask you out on a date? I don’t mind the centuries long age gap at all!”

No. That could never happen. Lenora, instead, waited another week, and then faked a bruise on her forearm with her make up kit. Theater experience paid off with a gruesome-looking injury, and even the nurses who saw her in rushed her off to Dictatious immediately.

He carefully took Lenora’s arm, gave it a sniff, and said to the nurses, “Alright then, off with all of you! This will be a simple procedure.”

The nurses, though confused, did as they were told. Dictatious gently lead Lenora to sit down on the patient bed, and while still gingerly holding up her arm with his two upper hands, said, “I know this isn’t the first injury you’ve faked, but this certainly was a clever one.”

Lenora blanched. “How…how did you know?”

“Smell, my dear!” Dictatious laughed, now letting go of her. “I did not smell any iron-rich blood typical of humans, but I did sense something of talc, and perfumed oils.”

“Oh…”

“I know the injury last week was real, in the sense that there was an actual cut. Though, it was too precise to have been a fall on a sharp stick outside.”

“…Oh…”

Dictatious smiled, more in amusement this time. “I would almost say that you’ve been wanting any reason to come and visit me. I’m flattered, Miss Janeth.”

Lenora crossed her arms defiantly. “I merely wished to get to know you, but I figured doing so out of the hospital would have been a strain on your time.”

She fiddled with her hands a little, and bashfully added, “I’ve never met anyone like you, so full of stories and wonder. I thought I was the only one who loved such things.”

His smile fell, and his four arms retreated behind his back. “You…you find me wonderful?”

“Well…yes, I suppose.” Lenora admitted. “I love your stories. I like being with you, it’s never a bore with you around.”

As if humbled by the confession, Dictatious cleared his throat and said, “And I admit, I rather like having someone to actually listen to my rambles. My life is not quite so adventurous anymore, as you may well know.”

“And what of an adventure with coffee?” Lenora offered. “On me, I insist.”

“I suppose I should, at risk of you injuring yourself further.” Dictatious teased, that smirk back now. “What say you, my dear?”

“I’ll meet you here at eight.” Lenora said, now leaving the room, but knowing she would see him again in a place that did not smell of sanitizer and sick people. “Don’t keep me waiting, either!”

"I've waited a fortnight for you to ask! What makes you think I would delay our venture even further?"

Lenora eyed him at the teasing tone, but giggled all the same. Perhaps asking an old troll out for a coffee date wasn't as hard as she thought it was.


	26. dictatious writes poems and other sexy adventures

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This isn’t explicit but it is, obviously, suggestive. No prompts this time, just drabbles that are sexy or about sex that I wanted to write out but didn’t come out long enough for their own chapters. Enjoy the steamy silliness.

“The troll stalks his intended prey, lurking for the perfect moment to strike."

Lenora peeked a glance over her shoulder at said troll, who was on the prowl -- and cartoonishly so. She stifled a girlish giggle and continued to brush her hair with her back to him. Dictatious grinned a devils grin, creeping closer and shameless of his little game.

“The prey sits about, relaxed and at ease, unawares of her impending demise. How thoughtless! But also _considerate_ for the one who hunts...”

Pondering how many animal documentaries Dictatious had been watching with their children lately, Lenora thought it best to not comment, though this time a giggle managed to escape. The brush was set aside and she loosened her bathrobe, purposefully allowing the sleeves to fall down her arms a little as a tease. Her husband crept closer, closer than she realized, an ear twitching at the sound of clothing slipping down her skin.

“How vulnerable, how peaceful...”

Lenora jumped a little at the sound of his voice just behind her, gasping as four hands darted out at her and pushing her back against his chest, bringing her off the vanity chair she had been sitting in.

“How _delectably enticing._ ” Dictatious purred, the hot breath tickling her ear and neck. Lenora closed her eyes and reveled in the moment, though only for a split second.

“Dictatious Maximus!” Lenora feigned offense, hard as it was with the way he caressed every sensitive spot on her body with those grabby hands. “Is this _any_ way to treat a lady?”

Dictatious first answered by tickling behind her ear with a tusk, and then said, “Who says a lady of mine can’t have a little fun?”

\----  
\----

The children all wrangled over a large half-salmon their father generously (and tiredly) slapped into their pool of water. Dictatious half-listened to Lorelei squeal in an attempt to stake claim over the whole thing, though Sam, as usual, was undeterred by her desire to take control over everything. He sat upright and munched away, gurgling as he watched Max Jr. swat hands with Jeremiah.

Dictatious hardly cared what his children did, so long as they were away from him. Deya bless them, but they were getting too excitable for him to handle for long.

Lenora wandered in shortly afterwards, her hair carefully wrapped in a fashionable turban, and wearing her husband’s extravagantly plush bathrobe. She muttered a good morning as she started up some coffee for the two of them before plopping onto Dictatious’s lap.

“Max?”

“Hm?”

“You’re wonderful.” Lenora mumbled with a smile, and snuggled up on his chest. Dictatious hummed and held her close.

“Yes, throwing a fish carcass at our spawn is exactly how I envisioned the glories of fatherhood.”

“And so? What of it?” she chuckled, more awake now with the smell of coffee wafting by her nose. “They’re fed, they’re cozy, and they’re alive.”

Lenora paused a little, slender, pale fingers walking up his chest. “And tonight, they can be Ophelia’s problem.”

“Oh?” Dictatious asked innocently enough. When Lenora began kissing his collarbone and neck, his eyes widened in realization.

“ _Oh._ ”

The teasing had to be cut short; any sort of affection shared between the star-crossed lovers became a magnetic force for overbearing, if loving, whelps who fought for places on their laps. But for once Dictatious didn’t mind. He knew better things would come along soon enough.

\----  
\----

Ophelia was often nosy about the lives of her friends, and she knew it. Shameless as always, during one of their shopping trips, she asked bluntly, “So how does sex with a troll even work, anyway?”

Coughing was her first answer, choking a little on the tea she drank from her tumblr. Lenora composed herself, flushed, and asked, “Really? You’re asking me that? in public?”

“No one’s listening, and it’s so crowded here, who’s going to hear?” Ophelia insisted with a playful grin. “Besides, we’re friends. I need to know if you’re being properly satisfied.”

Lenora rolled her eyes and continued to walk down the rack of dresses. Of course she would ask this question, _now_ , while shopping for a new date night dress. “I’m more than _satisfied_ , Ophelia. There really isn’t much to talk about.”

“So are they huge or what?”

“ _Ophelia!_ ”

“I’m not asking how big your husband is, just trolls in general.” Ophelia countered. Lenora grunted in frustration, trying not to laugh at how absurd the conversation became.

“Well...it’s...not that they _are_ small relative to a human, but they are...like pandas. Sort of.”

“Pandas?”

“They have uh...a small ‘member’, in comparison to their body size.”

Ophelia smirked. “Yikes, I hope their women have small ‘receptors’ to match them.”

Lenora pushed her reddening face into a top she was holding, and screamed.

\----  
\----

Dictatious had a typewriter he coveted, with Braille keys that made regular English text. Lenora could find him typing away to make a letter to Blinky, or responding to official business related to the theater. Watching his hands work a fury on that keyboard was not an unusual sight, so his wife thought nothing of it when he worked on a more private project.

But that night, Lenora heard the clickity-clack of his typewriter, and while not annoying or bothersome, she did wonder what that troll was up to. After rousing up a bit late that night, and realizing that there was no sound coming from the living room other than some mild snoring, Lenora jumped out of bed in nothing but her nightgown and slipped away to see what he was up to.

Around him were piles of papers, some with braille on them, others not, but all obviously from his hand. Lenora picked one up and began to read --

_“It is the surface dweller,_  
And she is grown so dear, so dear,  
That I would be the jewel  
That trembles at her ear:  
For hid in ringlets day and night,  
I’d touch her neck so warm and white“ 

An “Oh!” formed wordlessly on Lenora’s mouth as her face heated up. After going through several more intensely passionate prose, she smiled, and carefully straddled the lap of the author, who leaned back in his chair in a deep, unknowing sleep. Dictatious only awoke, and slowly so, when Lenora kissed him softly but deeply, eliciting approving grunts in his throat.

Six eyes half-opened, noting only the barest of discolored blobs now that his sight was worsening. Not that it stopped Dictatious, he felt about her and shared another kiss -- and suddenly jerked away, remembering where he was.

“Oh no! Don’t tell me you’ve read them!” he said in a panic. “I haven’t perfected it yet!”

“Max, honey,” Lenora said as she rubbed her nose on his, “When you find the love of your life making out with you and sitting on your lap because of half-finished poetry, I think you’ve managed to reach perfection.”

That bashful face turned smug now, and drew her in closer to him. “Well, I suppose an author of my stature doesn’t have to try very hard.”

He gave he another kiss, before adding, “And as late as it is, I’ll have to unwind you _somehow_.”

They didn’t even make it to the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The verse is from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem, "The Miller's Daughter", slightly adjusted to make it about Lenora. I'm a sucker for English classics, okay? Let me live through that in these two dorks.


	27. Even Hopeless Is Not Without Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gumm Gumms eat fleshbags, not find them intelligent, or riveting, or charming, or good looking…well, except for Dictatious Galadrigal, and it’s challenging everything he thought he knew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sort of an AU where Lenora is on the Trollhunting team from the beginning, and meets Dictatious in the Darklands during season 1. Seduction to the light side is always a fun scenerio to write!

Kindness and light did not exist in the Darklands, not where weak crystals hummed with the barest of energy and nyargaloths spanned the crevices, searching for weakened prey.

Dictatious knew he would have been among such prey, had he not used his wit to gain nearly split-second favor with Gunmar the Black. Perhaps sticking his nose in books all day gave him the ironic edge needed in an army of Gumm Gumms, where brutality and strength presided over all else. It certainly lent a hand when Dictatious used his expanse knowledge of arcana to aid the armies and their leader in the harsh landscape.

It was hell, pure and simple, bleak and devoid of meaning and life, but Dictatious found himself committing to the Gumm Gumm cause – first as a means of survival, then as an act of deception to cling to any hope he had left of making it back to the surface world. Even when he rested in some closed off cave, drapped with the leathers and skins of the nightmarish creatures the warriors hunted, Dictatious felt the coldness of the place creep into his stone flesh, biting away at his very being more and more every day. Genuine desire to escape, and pretending to support Gunmar, merged together over the centuries. Soon enough, the lies of the Dark Underlord became his truth, his one desire, for not only survival, but for glory.

Centuries of brainwashing, of desperation, of plotting the eventual downfall and murder of anyone who stood in his way: all of it crumbled because of a human woman.

At first, it was her fiery stubbornness. Having fallen into the Darklands with Nomura, after the battle with the Trollhunter, Lenora Janeth remained ever loyal to her student-turned-warrior and hardly succumbed to Dictatious and his usual overbearing wiles over prisoners.

In fact, her first night in her little prison, Lenora was found scraping away at the floor near the crystal bars that kept her in her little cell. Dictatious walked by, eyed her, and the woman merely gave a hard look back, chipping away the rock even more intensely.

That earned her a chuckle, but nothing more. Dictatious walked away from Lenora and wandered over to Gunmar’s throne to report back. He expected her to crumble sooner or later; after all, _he_ did.

Only, _she_ didn’t.

Lenora spoke daily with Nomura, eventually forging a close – if wary – friendship with the Changeling; it helped that they held a similar appreciation for the theater. They spoke of little else outside of stories: plays, musicals, operas, even poetic eddas and sagas or contemporary fiction. It was strange, as for so long, Nomura had been an enemy. She attempted murder on Jim, and worked with the likes of Bular; Lenora had no reason what-so-ever to like her. Yet, who else did they have but one another? After a few sessions of gladatorial amusement on Nomura’s part to punish her for Bular’s death, Lenora lost any sense of hate she had and eagerly sought her company instead.

Dictatious found himself pushing down a growing rage of envy in his chest, whenever he wandered over to the cells for the day, receiving only the barest of snippets of their conversation before they snapped quiet at his appearance. An airy giggle would squeak to a stop, a feathery gasp of amusement would halt mid breath, bouncy words of actual, real joy would escape and disappear – and he did not want them to.

On the one hand, it made him angry that they dared find any joy at all. Were they not supposed to be miserable and begging for mercy, death even? On the other, Dictatious looked forward to the sounds of their delight, especially Lenora’s. Her blue eyes would sparkle and crease, her naturally pink lips puckered with a suppressed grin or spread wide from laughter. Though her skin grew more pale and sickly from lack of sunlight, it still retained it’s pearly sheen on her delicate hands.

Lenora Janeth was dying along with everyone else in this dimension, yet she had the gall to be _happy_. And she refused to _share_ it. Dictatious, if asked, would say that he hated her, even if deep down he felt other things for the woman as well.

“You know, a troll can grow suspicious with such idle chatter that goes quiet at my approach.” Dictatious sneered one day, watching with a weight in his chest grow as Lenora’s smile dropped to nothing when she caught sight of him. She sat, her legs beneath her, and straightened up her back with her hands lightly sitting in her lap. Despite her clothing looking run down and ragged, and her shining curls sitting haphazard in a large bun atop her head, Lenora presented herself as nothing less than a respectful lady.

“Idleness is hardly a deserving enough reason to invite _you_.” she answered coolly. Well, answered in her trademarked teacher voice of sternness. Not that the six eyed freak had to know, and he didn’t, so he merely waved off her steely attitude in amusement.

“No matter, you’ll be a part of bigger things now. Guards?” Dictatious said in turn, gesturing for the warriors to open the cell and drag her out.

“Wait just a moment!” Lenora demanded as her voice cracked a little in shock. “I demand you tell me what is going on!”

For once Dictatious grinned, and smugly so, as he dragged her off elsewhere, away from the companionship of an equally demanding Changeling friend.

—-

Lenora sat stiff and still on the stone stool, feeling childish as the stool itself was made for a much larger troll. Every thing in the lab made her feel that way: small and unassuming.

With a shake of her messy head, Lenora took in a breath and tried to appear braver than she was. Just because it had been over a month since she landed in the Darklands, just because she feared that Jim and the others would never come back for her, did not mean that Dictatious had to know about it.

Though it was nicer, a little, to be in something more spacious than her jail cell. Granted it was the personal quarters of the troll she was wary of, but at the least it was a few degrees warmer and less open to outsiders.

“Ah! Getting comfortable?”

This time, Lenora let her strong woman persona slip, as his voice caused her to jump in her sit. Dictatious darkly chuckled.

“I don’t bite, woman, but keep yourself in line and you wont have to find out if I ever will.” he lightly threatened, in front of her now. Just across from Lenora, she watched curiously as he lifted a makeshift wall banner to reveal a hidden door. It slid open, revealing….

Sunlight.

“ _Oh_ ” Lenora gasped, fumbling out of the stool and soaking in the visage. “That, that can’t _possibly_ be…?”

“Actual sunlight? Hardly.” Dictatious said, carefully positioned to the side of the opening to avoid its rays. “But it’s a fragment of a sunstone, one that we managed to wrangle from the surfacelands.”

Lenora almost smiled – a sight that made Dictatious’s heart race – before she stopped herself and frowned. “What do I have to do with this? I highly doubt you care about my threatened alopecia.”

He could have snarled at that, but kept up his suave mannerisms. “ _Threatened_ is the key word. This very sunstone is the reason why you have survived without your precious sun for so long. Even when hidden away, the power of this stone positively affects others even miles away.”

“I still don’t know what this has to do with me.”

“You’re human, unharmed by the power of this stone.” Dictatious explained, now closing off the warm, delicious light from her view. Lenora winced a little, sudden darkness taking over – a harsh reminder as to where she truly lived. It was enough of a distraction for Dictatious to wander over to her, looming over her form as her sight gradually returned.

“Your job, _fleshthing_ , is to maintain the sunstone, to check its progress and nourish it’s growth. In return, you shall live safely within my personal quarters, and receive the nourishment of its light.”

Even Lenora could not help but shrink a little – just a little – as Dictatous eyed her down carefully before he continued.

“Should you prove yourself untrustworthy in any way, or attempt to take advantage of the kindness bestowed upon you by myself and our Underlord, and you _will_ be punished. Do I make myself clear?”

Again his heart fluttered, looking straight into those crystal blue eyes, holding a streak of hope that spurred him to lean in more closely. Lenora grew determined and nodded firmly.

“I understand, Mr. Galadrigal.”

“Such formality.” Dictatious rumbled in amusement as he turned away. “You may enter the little sunstone chamber anytime you like, provided that you report to me as I order it.”

Lenora nodded, watching him leave the quarters once again, catching a glimpse of a couple of Gumm Gumm guards on either side of the exit before the rock slid to a close again. She humphed, and for the first time wandered about her new ‘home’.

She just hoped it would not be her last home.

—-

Over the next couple of months, Lenora got to know Dictatious more than she would have initially liked. Despite her incredible loneliness in the various little rooms and chambers, she found the troll to be overwhelming in his presence – always leaning over her or behind her, guiding her a little too eagerly by the hand or shoulder, another hand ghosting over her back when he spoke.

And Sweet Mother in Heaven, did he _speak_. Dictatious never minced his words, and while not quite as verbose as is brother Blinky, he certainly wove together narratives and speech to literally entrap her into a conversation. This was something even the crafty Lenora had a hard time beating against, as Dictatious was practically Sherlockian in deduction and word games. Blinkous painted with his vocabulary to explain what he meant in the most perfect way he possibly could; Dictatious, as Lenora learned, merely saw language as yet another weapon to draw out his own power.

“You continuous muttering of poetry amuses me.” Dictatious noted to her one day, causing Lenora once again to jump in her spot. She had been idly doodling with some spare chalk over the smooth stone desk, repeating various lines from Midsummer’s Night Dream to bide her time. Immediately she scowled and scrubbed the chalk away with her sleeve.

“Your rude interruptions hardly amuse _me_.” Lenora spat. “What do you want now?”

“Tch tch!” Dictatious playfully reprimanded her. “So rude yourself for someone who complains of it. How would I ever justify taking you out for a promenade?”

Lenora’s eyes widened a little. “You mean taking me on a walk? And where to, in this hellhole?”

“Even hell, as you call it, as slices of paradise within.” Dictatious said, more gentile now. “And thanks, in part, to your care of the sunstone.”

“I suppose I earned a break.” she conceded, though cautiously so. The safety of Dictatious’s little home and near the warmth and light of the sunstone could hardly be compared to the dank nothingness of the Darklands.

Or so she thought.

The Darklands were still, well, _dark_. That in itself would never truly change. But it was filled with life. Odd, otherwordly life, but life nonetheless, and Lenora found herself tuggling Dictatious along to rush over to this or that bioluminescent flower, or an earthy, shimmering moss over some rocks. Fire fly-esque critters creeped here and there, but jovial in their escapades. The water fall that provided for such life was also crisp and fresh, the cool, humid air a nice change of pace from the warm dryness of the sunstone.

“The sunstone did all of this?” Lenora said, turning to face Dictatious. She blushed when she saw that he had been watching her closely. For once, the advisor was not smug or entertained, but reserved and careful.

“Yes, but only through your devoted efforts.” he said evenly. One arm entwined with Lenora’s, and another snaked around her waist to walk her away from the sight of life. “Even if the Sun is death for my kind, it is still the source of life for others. With the sunstone’s power, we may survive this ‘hellhole’ yet.”

Lenora’s brow knotted a little in thought. “You say that as if we’ll never escape at all.”

Dictatious did not know whether he should tell her that Bular was dead, and that the Janus Order had abandoned them. He elected to not say so, and instead grinned slyly at her.

“No one escapes the domain of our Underlord. And with the beauty you have given it, we will have no reason too anymore.”

“Oh.” was all Lenora said, her face pale again and going neutral and stiff. As soon as they returned to his quarters, Lenora broke free from his hold on her, and rushed off to the room with the vibrant sunstone. Dictatious, shocked at her sudden change in attitude, quietly walked over to the door that hid her away, an ear lifted upwards to hear what she was up to.

Both ears drooped.

Lenora was crying.

He hated it more than her smiles and the sparkling eyes that came from them. He hated that he discovered his love for her happiness, and that he cared for her at all. Dictatious breathing in and out more rapidly, shallowly, as he realized that every ounce of guilt he felt in making her unhappy stemmed from a growing love for the fleshbag woman, a love he successfully ignored until now.

So he ran with it.

—-

Lenora stepped out of the sunstone chamber, and while she had not cried in a few days, her eyes were still dropping and slightly red. She felt more numb than despondent now, but any hope from before had been dashed away.

When she reached the little side room where her “bed” was, Lenora found a neatly wrapped package laid atop the threadbare leather blanket that served as her mattress. Even Dictatious did not have easy access to things like paper and ribbon, something she was reminded of incessantly when Dictatious nagged her about using his precious few personal items around his quarters.

A hesitant hand reached out to graze her palm across the top of it. Whatever was inside was soft and plush underneath her touch. Lenora, mindful to not tear or rip anything, undid the ribbon holding it all together, and lifted up the crinkling paper one side at a time.

It was a shawl, long and plush and cozy. Lenora dared a little grin, holding it up and out to get a better view and feel for the material. The wool was soft and well-tailored, and the fringe at the bottom fine and curly. Quickly now, she threw off her ragtag leather cloak and donned her shawl, sighing into the cloud of comfort.

“Do you like it?”

Lenora no longer jumped at his sudden appearances, though she did wrap more closely into her shawl as she turned where she sat, looking up at the outline of Dictatious in the doorway. His eyes, all six of them, glowed softly, carefully watching. her. There was a faint tilt of a smirk that grew on his dimly-lit face.

“Don’t stop smiling on _my_ account, woman.” he teased, folding his arms underneath his own cloak. Lenora covered her returned grin underneath her finger tips as she replied.

“It’s a lovely gift. Thank you.” She then laid her hand back onto her lap, that smart little smirk of her own back on her face. “And I _do_ have a name you know. You are free to address me as such.”

“Lenora.” Dictatious said almost immediately, the syllables falling from his tongue with gentleness. She stood up, looking more graceful and at ease than he had ever seen her before.

Now a tad bashful, Lenora asked, “Do you mind, if we went to see the little alcove again?”

“Not at all.” Dictatious responded. He took her in his arms again, and walked with her. The alcove had grown since their last visit, some earth now forming where seedlings took root. Lenora gave a small gasp, when she noticed a hairless, bunny-like animal rush across it to hide among a fern in the corner. The sparkle in her eyes returned, and Dictatious shamelessly soaked it in.

A moment later, she suddenly stopped, and turned to face him. “Okay then, what’s the catch?”

“Catch? What catch?”

“This gift, taking me on walks, acting like a gentleman!” Lenora said, looking equal parts amused and cautious all at once. “What do you want from me then? Is this one of your tricks to get information out of me?”

Dictatious humphed proudly, authentically hurt at such an accusation. “All I ask is for your company and continued support in making the Darklands viable for life. Do you think so little of me as to assume the worst of my nature?”

“I do. Did.” Lenora quickly answered, blushing at his chuckle. “Even if you treat me so kindly, I can never forget I’m still a prisoner at the end of the day. That’s not something I’m prone to forgetting.”

Dictatious sat her down next to him, a hand lingering on her lower back longer than it should have. “We’re both prisoners here, in our own way. But you make the stay more bearable.”

“You’re doing it again!” Lenora said with a laugh. “You’re acting nice!”

“It’s not an impossible task, I assure you.” Dictatious said with risen brows. “Perhaps the sunstone is getting to my head, making me act like a kindly fleshbag.”

“There are plenty of fleshbags worse than you.” She admitted. “I’ll take what I can get.”

 _You can have all of me._ Dictatious almost answered, but bit back the words viciously. Instead they watched the little creatures hop around in the bizarre, miniature paradise growing around them, and pretended that they were on the surfacelands again.

—-

For once in his Gumm Gumm career, Dictatious was wrong. He assumed, and hoped, that Gunmar would be pleased with the sunstone’s progress. It certainly made his throne all the more powerful, giving the Underlord energy that he lost over the centuries.

But Gunmar wanted nothing less than the actual moon and night sky above his head, the fresh air and nature around him, humans at the billions waiting for his consumption.

“I need freedom, Dictatious!” Gunmar roared with a fist pounded onto his throne. “I can’t let this dying realm take me with it!”

“But sire, the sunstone has already created an ecosystem, with new life–”

Dictatious was cut short, Gunmar having gotten up, walked to him, and brought him up by the throat. His one, glowing blue eye shone more brightly in his rage.

“ _Enough _with these fruitless experiments.” he growled, lightly tightening his hold on the troll he held. “I often wonder, Dictatous, whether such experiments would even come to pass, without a fleshbag woman for you to dote upon.”__

__The advisor gasped a little in his grip. “D-Dark Underlord, I assure you, the human was _essential_ to the sunstone’s progress. Even if you reject its creation of life in the Darklands, it has sustained the crystals here that give you power, enough power to regain your strength for the surfacelands.”_ _

__“You mean IF we make it to the surface at all!” Gunmar shouted as he threw him upon the ground. “If you don’t find out how and where to gain access to the surface, then I shall dispose of your human pet myself! It has been distracting enough for you to lose sight of your Gumm Gumm ways!_ _

__Dictatious gasped and hawed, rubbing his raw throat. “U-understood, my-my Dark Underlord…I assure you, I have not forgotten.”_ _

__“Then leave me be, and get to work.” Gunmar said, returning to his throne. “Or it will be the woman who will pay for your insufficiency.”_ _

__Dictatious left, bowing towards his ruler, careful to not show any semblance of anger or displeasure with Gunmar._ _

__For Dictatious never forgot the Gumm Gumm ways: he wholeheartedly rejected them._ _

__—-_ _

__Dictatious returned, finding that Lenora had fallen asleep in his nest. Again. He never laid next to her, as much as he wished to, instead accepting the fact that she preferred his slightly-less hard bedding over hers, and instead sat across from her on a low-lying stone stool._ _

__Even with the sunstone, Dictatious was getting old. Very old. And Weak. With the way things were going, even his intelligence would not be enough for the likes of Gunmar. Not only would his life be in danger, should he fall out of favor, but Lenora would be in danger as well, whether eaten alive or taken in as a slave._ _

__She breathed so softly in her sleep now, using her beloved shawl to keep her warm; unawares of the hell he faced everyday to keep her in that peace. Dictatious could have smiled, if not fearful of where their future lay._ _

__He rejected Gunmar and the Gumm Gumms now, that much was decided. But what next? They had no where safe to escape. The alcove grew, yes, but no doubt Gunmar would order it destroyed. Dictatious was no warrior, and Lenora was no troll – neither could survive for long, not unless they knew a way out of the Darklands._ _

__Lenora sighed in her sleep and stretched a little before becoming still again. That was when Dictatious noticed a folded piece of parchment laying next to her._ _

__It had been the same paper he had used to wrap her gift with, the same ribbon also tying it all together. Curious, Dictatious carefully took the paper, unwrapped it, and folded it open._ _

__On the paper, was a scene drawn in his homemade ink. Dictatious looked over the illustration, noting the trees and flowers, as well as the little human cottage in the background. Though monotone in color, it felt vibrant and lively._ _

__There, in the little corner, she wrote, _For Max, for giving me hope again.__ _

__“Do you like it?”_ _

__Dictatious looked up, and took in a sharp breath, not realizing that Lenora had woken up and approached him so closely. She sat, legs underneath her, her shawl falling down her bare shoulders with her hair haphazard and wild from sleep. Her weariness was gone, and her skin looking soft and supple in the soft dimness of his room._ _

__But it was her eyes that ensnared him. Human eyes could not give off light the way troll eyes did, but they shone in their own way, giving a gleam of hope and tenderness that Dictatious found more precious than any gemstone._ _

__Without either of them speaking a word, Dictatious leaned into Lenora, and touched noses with her, sighing and smiling at her touch. He gasped a little when she pressed her lips to his mouth, puckering a little as tingles formed up and down his body. Lenora then sat back a little, looking worried._ _

__“I’m sorry, we shouldn’t…”_ _

__“What was that?” Dictatious demanded to know, four arms reaching out to her and pulling her into his lap. Lenora flushed red all over her face._ _

__“A kiss.” she said quietly. They touched noses again._ _

__“Then keep kissing me.” he said with a hard swallow, grunting in approval as they locked lips again, and deepened the kiss. Hands ran through her scalp as two others felt for her skin beneath the shawl. Lenora moaned and gripped tighter onto his own back, making Dictatious growl in his throat as he pushed her back into his bedding. The shawl was discarded and his trouser’s strap unlocked as he continued to kiss her, shivering at the sound of her moans and the feel of bare human skin against his stone touch._ _

__Suddenly, Lenora jolted a little, breaking the kiss though Dictatious continued to grope her legs and taste her neck._ _

__“Don’t stop _now_ , darling, we’ve only just begun.” he purred into her as hot breath tickled her skin. Lenora, as much as she enjoyed the sensation, stuttered, staring at the doorway with her glasses askew._ _

__“They…he…”_ _

__“Damn Gunmar and his ilk!” Dictatious announced, assuming she meant the Gumm Gumm’s disapproval. He sat up with a wild smile on his face, cradling her head tenderly. “I’m in love with you, Lenora Janeth, and I’m going to _make_ love with you! I don’t care who knows it!”_ _

__“I think _they_ care!” Lenora finally piped, pointing towards his doorway with one hand and covering her almost-bare chest with her shawl. Dictatious’s eyes bugged and twisted to see who the intruder was._ _

__The Trollhunter himself._ _

__With Blinkous just behind him, mouth agape._ _

__Oh._ _

__“B-brother!” Dictatious weakly laughed, twisting around fully and fumbling to put his strap back on. “Er, I suppose…this is a surprise, for you, concerning my survival!”_ _

__Blinky’s face grew eerily still, a flare in his tightened grip. “You have _fifteen seconds_ to explain yourself, lest I blind you for good!”_ _

__“That’s enough!” Lenora shouted, properly covered now. Jim stood back dutifully, recognizing her teacher voice. “Blinkous, he was not harming me. In fact, he’s the reason that I am not wasting away towards my death!”_ _

__She then paused, blushing a little as she looked around. “Though, I suppose this means that there is a chance of escaping?”_ _

__Dictatious held her hand nervously, knowing what kind of treatment he would receive as an ex-Gumm Gumm on the surface world. Still, he was willing to follow Lenora just about anywhere._ _

__“We mustn’t delay it any further. Lead the way, brother!”_ _

__“Don’t you think were not going to have a talk about what has transpired.” Blinky growled, as they met with Toby, Claire, and – to Lenora’s delight – Nomura. Dictatious chuckled, thinking that perhaps there was hope in hopelessness after all -- and within the human woman he came to love._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry the ending was kinda lame -- I couldn't think of anything better. *shrug*


	28. Wedding Bells in Hell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Desperate to limit the culling of humans, the town of Arcadia cuts a deal with the Gumm Gumms -- a political marriage to prevent any Arcadian citizen from being on the menu.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this was: “The more gregarious he was, the more withdrawn she became.” I decided to make this a sort of Arranged Marriage AU thing.
> 
> Also sorry for not updating very much, life is crazy, but I have other prompts I have in mind to do, and even have an idea for the main plot line with the theater. :)

Dictatious could not say the woman was beautiful or even decent looking -- despite his best efforts, no healing salve or potion would render his sight back to any of his six eyes. At the least, her scent was pleasant to his senses, and reminded him of a distant past as a bright-eyed scholar, when he used to travel through forests seeking answers to ancient questions.

Nostrils filled with a dewy, flowery scent, the scholar-turned-advisor signed the marriage contract and peace treaty; it was handed over to his new wife, a (formerly) Miss Lenora Janeth, who signed it with shaky hands.

The wedding feast that followed was jovial, considering the humans of Arcadia no longer feared for their immediate safety from their new troll overlords. They certainly had interesting music choices -- the electronic music grated his already sensitive ears.

Still, Dictatious was smiling and laughing all the same, boisterous in conversation and pleasantries. At his side at the wide table, of course, was his bride, though she kept to herself -- the more gregarious he was, the more withdrawn she became.

It suddenly dawned on the old troll that not once, since the moment they first met that dim morning, had Lenora uttered a single word. Not to him, not to anyone.

Well, so what? Dictatious hardly expected the woman to be all over him. Instead, he extended a haughty hand outwards to her when another guest stumbled away from the two, and grinned.

“Care to dance?”

Lenora must have shook her head, as he heard something jangle in response. Her earrings, perhaps? Humans in general apparently had a custom of overdressing themselves for special occasions. The next song to play, this time from the live band of the town theater, was more classical sounding, and softer. His hand still held out.

“Are you sure, darling?”

“I’m certain.” Lenora finally spoke. Her voice was quiet and almost shaking. Dictatious would have bit the inside of his cheek nervously, had he a fleshy cheek to do so with.

“I only ask, because your mother informed me of your preferences for--”

“ _You_ spoke with _my_ mother?” Lenora interjected, affronted. Dictatious frowned now.

“Do not take me for a thoughtless fool, woman. Your council made it very clear that marriages such as ours are no longer practiced, if not abhorred, by your people. I spoke with your kin, for matters such as this, to better adjust you to our life together.”

That voice stuttered, as if caught off guard, so Dictatious continued, though less harshly. After all, the humans in Arcadia gave the Gumm Gumms more than just a bride: they gave them access to their technology as well. He would have to continue carefully, to prevent any sort of fall out that would tamper with Gunmar’s plans.

“As I was saying, your mother informed me that you enjoy the high arts. Theater and poetry, in specific, but you took to dancing at a young age. Or was she wrong?”

“...No, she wasn’t.”

This time, Dictatious gently took one of her hands -- which he found quite smooth to the touch -- and lead her out of her seat.

“So, shall we dance?”

Lenora did not answer, though she did lead him to the dance floor. By now, humans and trolls alike were drunk, and did not notice or care much that the bride and groom finally made it to the dance floor. Dictatious placed his two lower hands on her waist, his upper right on just on her side, and the upper left in her other hand. They carefully swayed to the slow song.

“I’m still not used to this.”

“I don’t expect either of us to be, my dear, everything did happen so suddenly.”

Lenora blushed. “Oh, that too I suppose, but I meant your hands. You have so many of them!”

Dictatious snorted in amusement. “I’ll take away a few for your comfort, then?”

He slid away his bottom two hands, and jolted a little in his place when he felt the hand previously on his shoulder whip down to grab one of his lower limbs.

“No!” Lenora suddenly yelped. She cleared her throat, just as shocked as he was, slowly releasing his arm. “Forgive me, I meant...I meant that I don’t mind it. I find it fascinating.”

“There is more to me than my hands, you know.” Dictatious chuckled now, going back to their little dance. Lenora’s form felt closer to him now. He did not mind.

“I don’t doubt it.” Lenora admitted with a giggle of her own. Dictatious grinned at that, but it dropped as soon as she added, "I merely wish that we could have met differently, in other circumstances.”

“Oh? You should be careful how you say such things. They could be seen as treason against our Underlord.”

She sighed, now leaning closer to her new husband. “You needn’t remind me.”

Dictatious caught the barest whiff of alcohol on her person; it made his stomach tighten in displeasure. Had Lenora only been as compliant and kind as she was, because she drank herself to be so? Furthermore, he felt frustrated with himself for feeling upset by that fact. Absentmindedly, as Dictatious continued his troubled thoughts about their future, a rocky hand ran its fingers through her soft, curly hair, realizing that it was long and filled with flowers.

This was not right. Dictatious Maximus Galadrigal was a world-renowned scholar and author, explorer and friend-to-the-Trollhunter turned Gumm-Gumm noble and advisor to Gunmar himself, and he had a successful invasion and even a bride to show for it. Looking at it all from a distance, he had everything a man of power would ever want.

But it did not _feel_ right.

“Dictatious?”

Ignoring how hearing his name on her tongue made him feel, the troll in question moved his hand down to her back to give it a gentle rub. “Yes, my dear?”

By now, both of Lenora’s hands laid on each of his respective shoulders, her head carefully tucked beneath his massive chin. The alcohol was kicking in some more, then.

“Don’t think that this means I like you.” she said with a sudden snap of sternness, though her voice was still soft. “But there is only reason why I agreed to marrying you.”

That rose his brows mighty quick. “Go on.”

“I heard you defending the school where I teach...well, that I'm now principal of.” Lenora said as she stood away again, swaying a little but still determined to finish her explanation. “That vile little man -- Scaarbach, was it? -- he was...spewing this nonsense about needing to tear the school down for something or other. But you...”

Lenora did not need to finish. Dictatious, indeed, had fought to keep the schools open. He had to appeal to the opportunity for propaganda, of course, but the young, eager scholar still deep within him balked at the thought of any place of learning turning to shambles. Destroyed knowledge was losing a chance at more power, after all -- that was what he told the others, and less so to himself.

Well, _that_ , and the snivelling little Changeling was the one who brought forth the idea to begin with. Despite his great age, Dictatious could still be petty in that regard. Lenora placed her hands onto him again.

“When I heard what you said, what you did for my school and my students...I knew you were a man of virtue. Deep down, anyway.”

By now, Lenora was having trouble standing up on her own, so Dictatious took it all with grace and lead her towards an exit where an armed guard waited for them. As he helped her into their bed, sitting up next to Lenora’s sleeping form, Dictatious pondered whether he truly had any virtue left, or if the woman was grasping for anything she saw good in him.

Lenora snorted a little in her sleep, rolling over and taking up the rest of their only blanket. He smirked and stood up, his nocturnal nature beckoning him towards work -- specifically, to a school that needed rebranding.

If he had a wife to impress, then at the least, Dictatious was going to wow her with everything he had.


	29. Mirror Mirror On The Wall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After coming to terms with the fact that Dictatious is hideous by human standards, he broods over what this means for Lenora’s perception of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Body Image insecurity issues discussed in this chapter. Not dysmorphia or anything like that, but I know the topic is sensitive for some people. Comfort fluff through and through!

Conundrum trolls -- and other troll tribes as well, now that he thought about it -- always had round bellies, anatomically speaking. Dictatious patted his own now, sitting up in the bed he shared with his wife. It was normal, healthy, attractive even, for trollkind, to find a little bump or a barrel of tummy on a well-respected troll. It meant added muscle, strength, and even a comfortable living situation.

Technically, by all accounts, despite his short stature and old age, Dictatious had at least one good-looking feature about him.

But that was for _trolls_ , not human women.

Soft snores told him that Lenora slept on in ignorant bliss. Dictatious sighed, knowing she would not awake for hours, and so got out of the bed to ponder his thoughts some more.

It was supposed to be a simple rehearsal. Lenora found herself stepping in as an understudy for the female lead as both the actress and her actual understudy were stuck in a traffic jam. Dictatious watched from the sidelines, more than happy to shamelessly suck in the moment of his wife performing the role of wanton damsel. He was blind, but had felt more than once how long her hair had become since they first met, how soft it always was, how light and fluttery her hands could feel on his person.

And then it happened -- the kiss.

It was a theatric kiss, not actually real. In fact, several of the cast and crew were laughing, knowing how silly it looked that their owner and co-director would even kiss their male lead. Lenora chuckled as well, cutting the scene short for a break before the actual performers would arrive.

It was just a fake kiss. A kiss that Lenora was unlikely to dwell on or wish for. But it was a kiss. A kiss from what he knew to be a handsome young man who most certainly had no protruding belly to show.

Dictatious was never vain about his appearance -- few trolls were. They were not known for their cleanliness, and while the Galadrigal line was peculiar for their insistence for formality and refinement: it did not hold a light to the human standards of beauty, etiquette, or sanitation.

But now Dictatious fretted over many things about how he looked. Had his grey streaks thickened, or was he losing his hair to the color grey all together? Were his scars -- once a source of pride for him -- now more cobbled looking and aged terribly? Trolls had no wrinkles, but cracks, and Dictatious was certain he felt more on his face and body as time went on.

Not to mention that he was blind, old as hell, and had a belly as the perfect cherry on top.

Dictatious groaned and rubbed his face with his upper hands, his lower ones leaning against the kitchen counter. He had to face the facts: he was ugly, and Lenora was stuck with him.

What other handsome men, troll or human, had she passed up on to stay with him? Did she ever eye up anyone else, knowing that Dictatious would not be able to see her do so? Did Lenora only ever keep her around as a sort of business partner, to help run their family as well as the theater? The questions worsened the more they popped into his head and it began to throb.

“Max?”

Dictatious choked a little in shock, stumbling around to face his sleepy-sounding wife. “W-What? What do you want?”

Lenora scoffed. “You hate leaving that nest you call a bed. Something serious is the only reason you would drag yourself out. Is something wrong? Are the children alright?”

“They’re sleeping just fine.” Dictatious half-snapped at her, turning back to the counter. Bare feet padded along the tiles, the warmth of a hand pressed against his bare back.

His scratched up, aching, twisted, old back.

“ _Please don’t_ ” Dictatious hissed softly. Lenora withdrew her hand as asked but did not move away from him. She did not miss the desperation in his tone.

“Sweetheart, you’re scaring me. You’re not yourself at all.” Lenora pressed gently. “Please tell me if something is wrong.”

The tenderness and love clear on her voice was almost too much.

“I’m...fine. Really.”

“Max, I used to teach whole scores of students who hated being in my classroom. And you, mister, hate being here right now; I can tell. Don’t lie to me.”

Dictatious quietly growled and turned to his wife again. “I just...at the rehearsal...”

He heaved a heavy sight, and finally forced himself to get it out and over with already.

“You don’t hate my belly, do you?”

Lenora snorted in amusement at the bizarre question. “Your belly?”

“You _do_ hate it!” Dictatious bemoaned, hands up to his face in despair.

“Max, for goodness sakes, I -- Of course I don’t hate your belly!” Lenora said, trying not to laugh at how absurd it all felt to her. “I’m sorry, it’s just, where on earth did that come from? Why would I hate anything about you?”

“Because I’m a nasty old troll, that’s why!”

“And I’m, what? A fair maiden of incomprehensible beauty?”

That retort caught Dictatious off-guard. “Oh, well, I mean, you _are_ rather fetching, my dear.”

“But I’m not perfect, either. You love feeling my stretch marks even though they are glaringly red and puffy on my skin, you love my hair even though I’ve been growing my own grey hairs lately...and I suppose I’ve been getting a bit of a belly myself.”

“Oh?”

A rock hand went out to feel under the nightshirt Lenora wore, and she giggled from the ticklish sensation. Dictatious sheepishly chuckled as he felt the small, but growing pudge about her front and sides. “Oh, well, I suppose we both got our bellies, then...”

“See? We’re not perfectly good-looking. We needn’t be.” Lenora said to him. She leaned into him now and he held her closely. “I love you, Max, and I won’t have you throwing a pity party over your cute belly.”

“’Cute’, she says.” Dictatious rumbled with a smirk. Lenora pecked his chin.

“I’m your wife, I’m obligated to tell you that you’re cute.” Lenora told him. “Now come back to bed, I miss feeling your belly at my back.”

Dictatious smiled more genuinely now, and lumbered back to their room to finish their night rest. This time, he did not try to hide his belly among the pillows and sheets.


	30. Teacher's Pet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Professor Galadrigal hates watching the clock, but soon he won’t have to wait anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is essentially an AU where trolls and humans co-exist and there isn’t a war of Gunmar going on. Spicy romance is included, of course!
> 
> Also, 30 chapters??? WOW. I have others in my drafts too, so it's amazing to see this rarepair collection grow!

Ever impatient, Dictatious checked the trollish clock by the door -- only five minutes until the class ended, as well as the exam. Soon after was the freedom of summer and graduation.

It was not a large class, meant for the grad students who managed to prove themselves worthy enough for his strict and demanding program. Dictatious wasn’t the only one occasionally checking the time, as evidenced by the otherwise confident and hardworking students; in fact, many checked precisely because they wanted to be sure to complete this crucial exam.

The only one who did _not_ glance at the clock -- not even once -- was a certain Miss Lenora Janeth.

Four minutes and thirty seconds.

She had finished well over half an hour ago, and long since turned in the dreaded test. _The Oxford English Classics_ sat in her hands, reading to bide her time until it all ended. While others nervously darted their eyes at one another in silent comraderie, Lenora herself looked pleasantly at ease, absentmindedly playing with a stray curl in her dark hair as she focused more intently on a specific line she pondered over. Dictatious darted his eyes away and swallowed before they could trace down her neck.

Four minutes.

Tired of the clock and his students, Dictatious instead turned his six eyes to his desk. It was messy, though organized in its own way, with a stack of graded and ungraded papers to sort through before the term ended. That would be ample distraction, no? Just as he laid back in his overly-plush chair, however, Dictatious blanched -- the first paper he picked up was that of Lenora’s.

It had already been read and marked, but it had been hard to let go. Her dissection of the sagas of Kanjigar and Deya had been practically poetic, and Dictatious felt a swell of pride grow in his chest at how far his star pupil had gone under his tutelage. Another swelling feeling, one he was trying hard to push away, was that of admiration; as always, the old troll could not help but feel enchanted by Lenora’s witty word-smithing and personality.

The paper was slipped to another part of his desk, and the next paper was taken from the to-do pile.

Three minutes.

By now, troll and human students alike were making more noise, if minutely so. One gruffed in annoyance and banged his head onto his desk, another whimpered in fear. Another brief look upwards, and Dictatious found his eyes looking into Lenora’s -- bright blue, soft, and knowing.

Her little smile stole his breath away; the befuddled professor grumbled something to himself as he stood back up, straightening his trademark patchwork tweed coat to cover up his flustered behavior.

“You have two minutes!” he sharply barked. Lenora stifled a giggle and returned to her book as others sped up their writing. A few finished up with relief, while a few others pushed to finish as much as they could. Dictatious paced by the front row of desks now, purposefully ignoring Lenora’s playful presence.

“Excuse me sir -- am I allowed to pass the exam if I drop dead?” one spoke up. The others laughed, but one sharp look from their professor ended it quickly enough.

One minute.

Every time -- every damn time, when only a minute remained, Dictatious spied on Lenora from the corner of his eyes, trying and failing to tell himself that no, they most certainly would _not_ entangle themselves in his back office; they would _not_ roam their hands on one another, and share passionate kisses with little murmurs of loving affirmation. Not because he did not wish to, but because he was always terrified of being walked in on. Hell, his own brother and fellow professor almost outed them just a month before. That took quite a bit of explaining; nothing that Lenora could not charm her way out of, but it was a close one nonetheless. 

And yet, Dictatious found himself eagerly awaiting for the two of them to be alone.

Three seconds...

Two seconds...

Finally, the clock hand reached the new hour.

“Time’s up!” Dictatious said with sudden flourish. The bell rang soon after, and his little class all lined up to turn in whatever they managed to finish. One by one, each student left with their good byes, no doubt some of them making plans to crash and sleep.

Except for Lenora.

As soon as that last student left, as soon as the door closed, Lenora giggled and half-jumped into Dictatious, giving him a long, passionate kiss. He groaned and stumbled a little until his back hit the blackboard. Not even bothering to hide in his office this time, the two wrapped themselves up with one another in yet another passionate moment.

“I hate you.” Dictatious grumbled with fluttery breath. His legs trembled from excitement.

“Says the troll feeling up my skirt.” Lenora teased, touching her nose to his. Dictatious sighed, moving his hands to more modest pastures and simply enjoying her scent.

“Besides, we can elope tomorrow, in the evening. The chaplain is all for it, and I already have my certificate; I’m practically a free woman.” Lenora said, more gently now. She cuddled into his four-armed embrace with a grin. Dictatious widened all six of his eyes, unaware that they would marry so soon.

“You have it already? I thought you needed this class to graduate!”

Lenora snickered. “Of course I didn’t! I just wanted to see you is all. Grad school is tough enough as it is.”

Slyly and with fingers playing with his coat lapels, she added, “Though I did enjoy debating you over your thesis. There was some fun in that.”

“A woman after my own heart.” Dictatious humphed, a smile breaking out when Lenora pecked his cheek. They cackled together as they snuck out of the classroom together to plan their honeymoon, leaving the poor TA’s to grade whatever the professor did not.

Only 15 hours until the student chapel wedding remained, and once again Dictatious found himself watching the clock -- and this time, with joy.


	31. Everyone Dreams of Dictatious

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dictatious, a troll cursed to become a genie, has been in the service of a Lenora Janeth for only a short year – but finds silly human celebrations of such milestones are worth the effort.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> inspired by the ever timeless prompt of "true love's kiss"!afd

For reasons Dictatious found amusing, Lenora hated to keep him in his confining crystal lamp. It sat more like an elegant vase on tablestand by the door, demoting it to mere decoration.

“It’s like putting an animal in a cage.” she explained once, when prodded about it by her insistent genie. “And you are no animal, Mr. Galadrigal.”

“My name is Dictatious, my mistress.” he would drawl with a smirk. No matter how many times he would say that, Lenora refused. She was on a mission to shower him with dignity and respect – not that he was complaining. As simple and humdrum as the human life was, he would take boring over the danger and anger of Gumm Gumms any day. He still shivered whenever Bular crossed his mind -- though Lenora knew nothing of the troll world beneath them yet, he still managed to get wind of the Gumm Gumm prince's death, and it was that bit of news alone that he got any sleep at all.

Lenora walked by, politely apologizing for temporarily blocking the TV screen, the shine of the show illuminating her curly, black hair in the dim room. As always, Dictatious found himself looking over his mistress more than was proper.

Perhaps it wasn’t so boring here after all. Lenora was a lovely woman, and as Dictatious discovered over time, she had an even more intriguing mind. A clever mind. A mind that was a little too nosy for her own good.

Which was why he watched with annoyance as said woman sat down next to him just a while later, cozy in her PJs, fluffy robe, and slippers, a tray with tea and crackers set down on the coffee table. Lenora settled herself into the couch next to him comfortably before turning to him slightly, an “innocent” little smile on her red lips.

“No.” Dictatious told her flatly. Lenora laughed a little and waved him off.

“Oh come off it. We have this conversation _at least_ once a month. It’s tradition.” she said, pouring him a cup first, as she always did. “If you want any help from me, in ending your curse–”

“And I always tell you that there is no end to my curse.” Dictatious said with an aggravated sigh, accepting his tea. “Oh! Lemon spice!”

“You’re favorite.” Lenora said, sipping some of her own tea now. Her blue eyes brightened a little, but looked away: unable to look her genie for long in any of his six, amber ones. Dictatious swallowed his drink in one gulp and sat up some.

“Go on with it, my mistress! What crackpot scheme is up your sleeve this time?”

Lenora put down her cup and leaned back more into her side of the couch, a pillow held onto her chest bashfully.

“Do you know what day it is?”

"Thor's Day, as your people call it."

Lenora chuckled a bit, but shook her head. "No, I mean, it's a special day. Do you know why it's special?"

Dictatious hummed, thinking seriously for a moment to try another guess. “One of your birthdays? I saw one on the television here.”

She giggled again, but more loudly this time. “No.”

“Well I don’t know, I hardly follow your human calendars, my mistress. Is it a special _surprise _, perhaps?”__

__“It’s…it’s the anniversary, of when I found you.” Lenora told him quietly. She finally looked up at Dictatious fully. His eyes widened._ _

__“And this is important to you?”_ _

__“I know you told me that non-human creatures don’t really celebrate milestones.” Lenora said, burning up her cheeks and feeling silly now. Dictatious tried to contain his own beating heart, hating how cute she looked._ _

__“But you fleshbags do.” Dictatious said, leaning back again and trying to sound nonchalant. “Of course, if you wish for anything, then merely make the command, and it is yours, my mistress.”_ _

__Lenora smiled a little again, though this time it held more amusement than before. “I never made a single wish from you. You know how I feel about this ridiculous genie nonsense.”_ _

__“You can make one now.” Dictatious offered. Lenora stood up, oblivious to the message he was trying to subtly share, and now looked excited._ _

__“I do have one wish – but not one you need to magic for me! I hope you like dancing, good sir.”_ _

__“I – what?” Dictatious said, watching in confusion as Lenora jumped to her feet and pushed the coffee table into the kitchen area of her apartment. The TV was turned off as well, and put a CD into her stereo system. An upbeat, though light, swing song came on and Lenora turned to him with the giddiest smile on her face._ _

__“Join me?” Lenora asked, already reaching out for Dictatious’s top pair of hands and pulling him up. As with all genies, his only wear was that of trousers that resembled a Turkish salvar, in a plain black with a simple gold belt buckle to hold it in place. It fit, despite the sudden dance party, as Lenora was hardly in a dancing dress herself. Dictatious tried to sneer but it came out as a strained chuckle._ _

__“Perhaps it was best to not let you make wishes, my mistress.”_ _

__“Oh come on, it’s fun.” Lenora said smiling wide. Dictatious puffed his cheeks, unsure, as he had not done dancing of _any_ kind since he was a robust, young lad. But the way she looked up at him made the stubborn troll soft._ _

__"As you wish, my mistress. How do we start?"_ _

__He was shown the basics, and soon the two literally got into the swing of things. Nervous first steps quickly grew more fluid, though Dictatious found himself looking down at his feet more often than not to be sure he would not tread on his human friend's toes. As always, Lenora was nothing but a fine balance of energy and grace. On a whim, Dictatious swung Lenora around by her waist, lifting her off her feet and earning a joyous cackle on her part._ _

__"Where did that come from?" she said teasingly, loud enough over the music for him to hear._ _

__“I’ve got rhythm in these old bones yet!” Dictatious announced as she was set down and the rest of the dance continued. He felt surprise at his response — was he actually having _fun?__ _

__One look into Lenora’s laughing face, and Dictatious thought, _of course he was having fun._ It was always something or other with this woman, in the best possible way._ _

__Tonight it was dancing, but before it had been sneaking him into theaters to watch a play, and driving him to the beach to watch the waves under perfect moonlight. Dictatious swelled with admiration at the thought of what else awaited the two of them: domestic scenes of living room dances, and hopefully something more._ _

__“Mr. Galadrigal?”_ _

__“Hm?” Dictatious answered. The two of them slowly swayed to a new song now, a light serenade crooning from the stereo. Lenora stood close to him as they continued._ _

__“Do you really mean it? When you say that this curse is unbreakable?”_ _

__Dictatious almost groaned, but stopped himself. He would now allow himself to spoil the moment. “I…yes, I meant it. It’s quite impossible to fulfill the quest needed.”_ _

__That was a mistake. Lenora immediately stopped dancing and held onto his arms in excitement._ _

__“A quest? I’ll do anything, whatever it takes! I’ll, I’ll quit my job and go on one with you, if that is what it takes — I swear it!”_ _

__Even the hopeful smile did little to quell his worry for her. “No, not that kind of quest, mistress. It’s…er, a rather personal quest, actually. One that I am hardly young or dashing enough for.”_ _

__Lenora gave Dictatious that unimpressed look of hers that he grew to find more amusing than threatening._ _

__“I mean it, my mistress. It’s a quest of…uh…” Dictatious fumbled a little now, not quite looking Lenora in the eye. He even turned his back to her. “A quest of…"_ _

__"A quest of what?"_ _

__"...True love.”_ _

__Lenora’s eyes widened, and was happy that Dictatious could not see her blushing furiously. “A quest to find true love? So um, something akin to ‘true love’s first kiss’?”_ _

__“Something like that, yes.” Dictatious said quietly. He clasped his hands together to stop them from shaking; he couldn’t bear to bring up the possibility of her loving him. The audacity of it!_ _

__His unusual timidity was met with a soft hand placed on his back._ _

__“Mr. Galadrigal, what makes you think that you have to be young and dashing for love? I’m sure even someone like you could manage.”_ _

__“Thank you for the enchanting encouragement.” Dictatious said sarcastically, but his heart raced again at the sound of her giggling._ _

__“It’s true though, you _can_ find love. I know _you_ have.”_ _

__“…What do you mean, _have?_ ”_ _

__Lenora did not answer. Instead, she walked around him and placed a hand under his chin to guide his eyes to his. With a smile, she leaned forward, and kissed her genie._ _

__The sensation of touching lips and roaming hands was the last memory Dictatious had of his remaining moments as a genie, for he quickly underwent the magical transformation to become his old self. The kiss deepened and grew more passionate, as light wrapped around them and air whipped around at the cascading energy that returned Dictatious Galadrigal back into a non-magical, though otherwise proud, troll scholar. The kiss continued even after the transformation came to close, and it was just them and the music again, in the dim lighting of her apartment living room._ _

__Lenora opened her eyes first — they looked over his face, noting that nothing much changed in his appearance. Except, of course, Dictatious’s own eyes glowed a little less now, as they opened hazily once the kiss ended._ _

__“Again?” Dictatious asked breathlessly and drew her in closer. Lenora couldn’t help but laugh at how Dictatious was much more interested in kissing than enjoying his new freedom._ _

__“As you wish.” Lenora finally responded, and took his toothy, smiling maw with her lips once again._ _


	32. Obligatory MerMay Special with the fam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lenora disappears during a family vacation, and the whole family gets involved to find out how and why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No one asked for mermaid shenanigans except for ME. You’re WELCOME. Had this in my drafts forEVER but a lovely comment on an earlier chapter prompted me to polish it up and publish! Thank you to Stories_From_Unicron!

“Get that out of your mouth!” Dictatious snapped, moving far too fast for an old blind troll; he reached his mark though, and successfully nabbed the knife right out of Jeremiah’s mouth. Lenora, who had watched all of this unfold in under a second, stared wide eyed in astonishment.

“Max, I love you, but sometimes your more trollish traits frighten me.”

“How so, darling?” he asked with a suggestive tone. Lenora’s rebuttal consisted of a soft slap to the face with an oven mitt. Icing from the cinnamon rolls still stuck to the fabric. It had been a hectic morning as they enjoyed their first family vacation since before the whelps were hatched.

“Understood.” Dictatious said with an amused face now. He placed the knife back on the counter, scratching the head of a now-content Jeremiah, purring loudly as the other whelps chirped and squeaked over their rare breakfast treat.

Dictatious could hardly complain, even with the whelps energetic over the new space, even with their destination involving the sunny, remote beach. He absentmindedly patted for his trusty umbrella – it was wide and sturdy, more than enough to cover his sun-sensitive body from crumbling to stone. Thankfully the whelps were all immune to sunlight, perhaps due to their mixed human and finfolk ancestry. Either way, Dictatious eagerly awaited their first outing to the beach just outside their door, a new novel in braille ripe for reading just at the shore while his loved ones played in the water.

At first, nothing had gone awry, which made the troll more comfortable than he should have let himself be. A little while after getting cozy in his pop-up tent, Dictatious leaned back with a happy sigh and started his indulgent story.

Of course he fell fast asleep just under an hour later, and thought nothing of it. He only woke up a few hours after that, all four of his whelps crowding around him and pawing at him with whines.

“Oh what? What is it?” Dictatious grumbled as he sat up. Max Jr. held onto his father’s arm nervously.

“Mama bye bye.”

“…What?”

“Bye-bye, bye-bye!” Lorelei sang, bobbing on his chest in an up and down fashion. Dictatious coughed in shock and shot up to his legs, clumsily grabbing his umbrella and opening it. The others were ushered into the home, laid down for their naps in their little nest next to the bay windows, and then Dictatious got to work.

First he walked by the shoreline, counting his steps to know where he was from the house. As he did so, he shouted out for Lenora, as well as belting out a rare troll roar – anything to grab the attention of his wife, wherever she happened to be.

“No no no no no…” Dictatious breathed rapidly. One phone call later, and he had his Trollhunter nephew and the others at his vacation rental home in no time.

“And you’re _sure_ you don’t recall anything else?” Blinky pressed. Dictatious growled in frustration.

“Yes, I am sure! I was asleep, and the next thing I knew, the little ones woke me up. Lenora was no where to be found!”

Jim frowned. “Maybe the kids can tell us something.”

Thankfully the whelps all began awakening just as they had arrived, and so Claire cuddled up with them in their nest to get them awake and compliant enough to communicate. Being a big sister had its perks, it seemed.

“It’s so good to see you all!” Claire cooed with genuine affection. Max Jr. covered his face shyly, though the others purred and cuddled against her happily. “So, I heard your momma is away somewhere?”

“Bye bye, mama.” Lorelei said, doing a perfect imitation of a farewell wave. Sam also waved, though he was quiet. Claire, keeping her face pleasant, continued.

“Mama went bye bye?”

“Mama bye bye.” Max Jr. nodded sagely for a little toddling. “Wa-wa.”

Dictatious sucked in his breath sharply, Blinky stopping him from bursting out so that the whelps would stay focused on their human friend and her questions.

“Mama’s in the wa-wa? Where in the wa-wa?”

“Bad wa-wa.” Max Jr. answered, looking sheepish, as if he were at fault for something. At that, his father finally broke out fervently.

“That’s what we call the deeper parts of the sea, and anything beyond the shoreline.” Dictatious said, pacing now as he rubbed his face nervously. “But why would Lenora ever go there?! She would never go where the little ones could not follow! She must be in danger!”

“But how? And why?” Jim said. “We even did a quick patrol of the area before we got here. There’s nothing in the ocean, not in this area anyway.”

“I have contact with a local troll settlement in the cliffs, they would have told me of any dangerous creatures in the water, and they have not.” Blinky explained, stopping his brother by the arm.

Nomura, who had been deathly quiet the entire time, gave a knowing explanation after careful forethought. “She must have gone feral.”

“I–Beg your pardon?!” Dictatious spat, offended. Nomura rolled her eyes and faced him more directly.

“It’s not an insult, it’s just…a _thing_ , that Changelings go through, when they are repressed.” she explained. “For troll changelings, if we are in human form for too long, we have a tendency to rush off and act on our base instincts, since we are not used to managing our trollish nature after such a long break from it.”

“Oh my…I suppose Lenora hasn’t been in her finfolk form for long before this vacation took place?” Blinky asked. Dictatious mumbled to himself of visits to the aquarium, as well as how often Lenora soaked in their tub at home. All four hands counted days, weeks, and months that had passed.

“And with the new theater season…the whelps had fun that night but she didn’t dip in…the tub also had to get repaired once…Well then, I can’t say she _has_ been in her finfolk form for long.” Dictatious said, cheeks puffed now. “Even _I_ did not think to account for such a thing occurring. Lenora is normally so civil and level-headed!”

“As a human, yes, but not as a merwoman.” Nomura said. “But that doesn’t matter now; if she’s feral, then she’s likely put up a nest somewhere. She may come back looking for the kids soon.”

“Could we trap her in a fishing net?” Claire pondered aloud as they all made it outside. It was truly dark now, with the full moon high above them in brilliant illumination. Blinky shook his head.

“I’m afraid not, it works well for _fishing_ , but merfolk are cleverer than fish, and Lenora all the more intelligent and quick-thinking.”

Normally that was something Dictatious would brag about but it mattered little to him now. Though, speaking of bragging…

“The thing about merfolk is that they love to boast, and have no shame for their vanity!” Dictatious declared. The little whelps scurrying behind him, he bustled his way to the shore line where the night-time tide rolled in. “Lenora even as a human woman is notoriously finicky about how she presents herself. We could distract her by appealing to her merwoman nature!”

Jim looked out over the shoreline, frowning. “So we use the kids as bait and get her to stick around by being flattered. Then what? If a net won’t work, what will?”

Dictatious grinned smugly and pulled at the straps of his brand new trousers. “Leave that to me, boy! And dear brother, you don’t happen to remember how to make a lute, do you? The way we did as whelps for fun?”

Blinky twitched an ear, ignoring Nomura’s snickers. “I do…”

“Good. I need to serenade a merwoman back into my arms.” Dictatious declared. “You boy! Girl child! How are your vocals?”

After proving to his uncle that he could _not_ sing, and deciding that Claire served better as the lutist, Dictatious relegated the Trollhunter to that of trapper, along with Nomura and Blinky. They held the bouyant cage runes now, floating out into the shore, as Dictatious sat upon a rock with Claire and had his children rush out to play in the water.

Sure enough, after a moment of playtime, there she bobbed up – his wild and free Lenora. Of course Dictatious heard her arrival more than anything, but he liked to imagine how she looked under the moonlight with her salted skin and luxurious hair. The thought spurred numerous freestyle lyrics, motioning for Claire to begin stringing a simple tune.

At the first pluck, Lenora looked straight at where Dictatious sat. The whelps watched as well, though they still clamored for a spot in her arms.

Though his voice was more than raspy and sharp, his tone was still a hearty baritone like Blinky’s; he carried his pitch firmly and proudly over the sound of crashing waves.

_”She came from the ocean,_

_this wild girl from the sea,_

_her hair flowing southwards,_

_she walked towards me…”_

Claire never fumbled in her playing, though she could have sworn she felt her heart beat harder than ever as Lenora slowly waded her way towards the rock they both perched on.

The whelps giggled and chirped happily as they climbed towards their father and claimed places on his shoulders and lap. Claire sat directly behind him, and so Lenora only saw the enchanting troll in front of her, and truly was enchanted by him.

For the past 12 hours, Lenora felt only the call of the ocean, a primal mother who guided her by way of current and pure instinct. The first urge was to swim out as far as she could, soaking in all that she could see and sense in this new territory. Once Lenora felt satisfied, she quickly turned to making her new nest within a thick and hearty kelp forest. It was a quiet and simple home, one that suited her intense need to freely roam as she pleased with little to fear from nosy humans or predators. Then, loneliness set in, and Lenora sought out the children she suddenly recalled she had.

And now she heard the familiar voice and familiar face edging her closer to the land. Slowly, bit by bit, Lenora began to recall that she was, in fact, his wife, as well as a human woman with a human life. The sudden thought of responsibility and land-living made Lenora hesitant, something that no one missed. Jim nodded to Nomura and Blinky, all of them raising their runes at the ready in case she made a dash for it.

“You needn’t hide, my dear.” Dictatious spoke as gently as he could now, Claire slowing her melody to a stop and slinking away back to the shore with the whelps so that it was just the two of them speaking, alone.

Lenora bit her lip. Her blue eyes shared a look of confusion that showed in her tone. “I…I didn’t…mean to…”

“Even if you _did_ mean it, I would take you back in a heartbeat. I always will.”

A thousand fears and thoughts crossed Lenora’s ocean-raddled mind: of knowing how noisy and stressful human life was; of how she had to hide her marriage and children from her new public life as the owner of a popular theater; of how that made her new ocean home all that more peaceful and inviting…

“It’s just as I promised, when I wrote you the vows, for our wedding. Do you remember?”

Lenora’s blue eyes flashed, and looked up at Dictatious. “I vow myself unto you…”

“ _All that I am, all that I will be, for the rest of my days and for the rest of your own._ ” Dictatious finished with a wide smile to hide his nervousness. “I can’t give all that I am to you, if you never come home with me.”

Though she tentatively placed a hand onto his, taking a seat on the rock now, Lenora still looked unsure. “Home…”

“We can visit the sea anytime you wish. You can swim as much as you like. But I need you home, the children need you.”

Lenora paused, oddly stiff, and Dictatious wondered for a heavy second if she were about to make an escape. But then, there was a crackle of energy as she transformed back into a human woman, donning her swimwear once again in place of her glittering tail.

“Forever and always,” Lenora whispered, “I am yours to cherish.”

Dictatious let out a long-awaited sigh and held her close against his chest. “It’s alright dearest, it’s alright…”

Lenora sobbed a little, but he let her get it out all the same. The others swam back to the shore to meet with Claire and the children, leaving them all the time in the world to return to reality.

“Oh goodness, I’m…I was so _horrible._ ” Lenora eventually gasped out, wiping away her tears with a scarf on Dictatious’s person. “It’s like I was in a dream, but I know I left you and the children all alone. And with you out in the sun no less!

“I don’t blame you in the slightest.” Dictatious huffed, caressing her hair. “So enough of this self-pity! I can’t have my wife miserable on such a beautiful night.”

“Um, thank you, but…”

Lenora stopped herself, words hanging in the air and dying to get out in the open. Dictatious breathed in and out carefully.

“You’re holding back again, darling. What is it?”

“Oh, I shouldn’t say it, you’ve done so much for the theater. You were the one to _buy it_ for me, for goodness sakes!”

Dictatious rose a brow. “You no longer wish to work for it?”

“Not yet. Not today.” Lenora said as her shoulders slouched. “But I…I can’t stand pretending to be someone that I am not. Now that it’s so popular, it’s attracting out-of-towners who know nothing of trollkind or magic. I have to hide _you_ from everyone. I have to hide my _life_ from everyone. And…”

Lenora gave out a shaky breath, finding her favorite place under his chin. “What I hate the most is not being able to call myself ‘Mrs. Galadrigal’, or even a mother! Add in this merwoman nonsense and there is no escape for me.”

“And the sea was a perfect escape for you, I reckon.” Dictatious said with understanding. “Well, it’s a fixable solution, if a daunting one. I suppose I could snoop around the grapevine for a suitable buyer, groom them for purchasing in a year or three, perhaps even look up new homes far from those pesky fleshbags…”

Lenora, shocked at his pleasant reaction to her declaration, shot up in his lap. “You’re not angry? We’ve poured _so much_ into that theater together!”

“And I’m glad of it, darling. We’ve accomplished your dreams of working in the acting arts, given me enough work to get off my lazy rumpus, and even started a family during the whole charade.” Dictatious nuzzled her wet hair. “Besides, we’re both a couple of old coots, and these whelps of ours can’t hide in some human town forever. We would have had to move out eventually.”

Lenora played with his chest a bit. “…So we could perhaps buy this vacation home, and make it our permanent residence?”

Dicatious laughed. “I’ve heard humans have these things called ‘house boats!’ Easy enough to upgrade magically for troll and finfolk use alike.”

“Oh! How adventerous!” Lenora perked up now, tears completely gone. “Perhaps we could make this a ten year plan. It’s not exactly easy to sell a whole theater after all, and I _do_ wish to find someone to take care of the work we put into it. And of course I suppose this means the children will have to be homeschooled–”

“One step at a time!” Dictatious said with a laugh. He stood up and held his wife bridal style. “And for now, let us step back into our vacation. I can’t dump those little hellions onto Blinkous for much longer, you know.”

Lenora hummed happily and cuddled up close. The ocean still called for her, but at least now she knew she could return for good, when the time was right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The “song” is actually Michael Faudet’s own “The Mermaid”!


	33. Just Another Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few short drabbles about a typical opening night at the theater for Lenora and Dictatious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to do something light and cutsy, but I am planning to do heavier stuff soon with the Mermaid plotline. And yet, I am now thinking of making a Phantom of the Opera AU with them haha. Would any of you like to read that?

**Just One Little Kiss**

“Your desire to ravish me is painfully obvious, you know.” Lenora said with a smirk. She watched her husband sit attentively in their bathroom, right on a fuzzy stool he preferred, as she dressed herself up for opening night of a long-awaited play. It was a part Lenora was long since used to, but was especially important now – with their new plans to live in the sea in the future, they had to impress prospective buyers for the theater. From her make up to the stage to the refreshments: it all had to be absolutely perfect.

So of course now was the time for the two to engage in their usual flirtatious pre-show games. Even if Lenora were as blind as her husband, she had long since learned the signs of a troll eagerly listening to her every move, sniffing the air softly when he thought she wouldn’t hear it.

Dictatious, of course, reacted in feigned offense to her accusation. “Painfully obvious? I will have you know that I am more clever than to be caught on by some fleshbag!”

“A fleshbag who’s long become privy to your wiles.” Lenora giggled. But then, she frowned, turning to face her make up bag. “Oh shoot, where did my gloss go?”

That was a serious inquiry, as it was her preferred color and brand for professional occasions such as this. As Lenora fussed over her things looking for it, she missed the dangerously smug grin growing on her husband’s face. He chuckled a little as he deftly tossed the lip gloss out of his pocket, and held it out of his hand.

“Oh, this silly thing?” he said tauntingly. Lenora turned around and scoffed.

“Max, I’m not playing this game. I need to be ready soon!”

“You can be…for a price, of course.”

“We’re _not_ having a quickie in this bathroom, and certainly _not_ in this dress.” Lenora deadpanned. She purposely withheld the fact that her dress did, in fact, have slits up the sides, so a quickie was perfectly doable, but she refused to lose the little game that they played every single time Lenora dressed up. Ah, if only he knew! Dictatious would have badgered her relentlessly to give it a try. Lenora smiled at the thought, before Dictatious answered.

The gloss twirled in his upper right hand as he leaned back, the left one held behind his head lazily. His lower set of hands rested just as lazily in his lap.

“ _I_ don’t turn our kisses into lovemaking, darling, that’s always on you. However, you know the price for leaving this bathroom at all – one little kiss.”

“ _One little kiss_ , you always say that.” Lenora tried not to giggle, walking over to him now. “How about this? You hand over my gloss, and I won’t stomp your foot.”

Dictatious sat up rather quickly from his seat, enough to give Lenora a small startle, as the gloss was held high over his head and far away from her reach.

“You’re cheating! Again!” Lenora laughed this time, failing to grab her make up as she stood on her tip toes. Dictatous cackled cartoonishly as his two lower arms swooped around her and pressed her against him. He nuzzled his nose against her face.

“Just one little kiss! Is that so much to ask?”

“It is from the likes of you.” Lenora said, playfully resting her whole hand on his face to block a kissing attempt. “Do you ever tire of this? You would think a troll your age would act more maturely.”

“I’m mature enough to know what I want, and I want you to kiss me.” Dictatious huffed behind her hand. Lenora smiled gently this time, placing her hands on each side of his face.

“You’re impossible, Max, but I do love you.”

Their noses touched. “I love you too, my dar– _Oh no you don’t!_ ”

Lenora happily squealed as she tried and failed to distract Dictatious long enough to nab her lip gloss back. By now he sat back down with her, all four arms holding her down tight as she continued to laugh.

“You can’t blame a girl for trying! Always stealing kisses from me, I have to outsmart you one of these days.”

“But not today, I am guessing.” Dictatious purred, brows wagging suggestively. Lenora answered by kissing her husband, and seeing where it would lead the two of them this time around.

**The Troll of the Opera**

Lenora laughed at a bad joke a sponsor cobbled out, and almost choked on her cocktail drink when a shadowy figure darted out form the corner of her eye.

 _Must he always do this?_ Lenora thought to herself as she forced a smile. It felt like every intermission, she had to play watch guard for a certain troll that liked to mingle just beyond the crowds.

With the theater now more popular than it had been for years before, it was unsafe for Dictatious to assume all patrons attending were Arcadian citizens. Many out-of-towners and tourists now flocked to the theater and they knew nothing about trolls, let alone mermaids, Changelings, or any other magical creature. As such, Dictatious missed out on chances to mingle with other humans the way he liked, and so he darted about now, just out of sight, to eavesdrop or sneak some troll-friendly treats from the sidelines.

“Just a moment, if you please.” Lenora said, excusing herself after watching the shadow dart to the basement door. She followed the ‘shadow’ and found her husband at the very bottom, pulling something out of his favorite, handmade tweed jacket to give to the technicians just below.

“The chef made too much cheesecake, and I know you two seem to adore this rancid pile of barf.”

“You make it sound so appetizing.” the older worker joked before taking a bite. Lenora couldn’t help but smile, watching as her husband wore his usual party attire, but fussing over the employees that did not get a chance to shine in the dazzling intermissions she had to focus on.

Perhaps this shadow should be left alone to do his bidding, after all.

**The Box and The Troll**

Lenora eagerly awaited for her husband now. She had no important visitors with her in the theater box, and for once they wrangled a babysitter for the whelps. Though, she did make a note to bring in Sam for the next show of Fiddler On The Roof; the soft-hearted little boy would adore this sort of play.

“You know, we never managed to get that quickie in the bathroom like we wanted.”

“You mean what _you_ wanted.” Lenora teased without turning around. She heard the footsteps walking carefully behind her, knowing that he was out of sight from the crowd below.

“I wouldn’t be against it, I suppose.” Dictatious said, wrapping two arms around her shoulders from behind. “It’s as if we’re all alone, no one to bother us…”

“We’re both loud, and this is a very quiet play.” Lenora said to him with a smirk. Dictatious almost protested, before admitting defeat.

“That is quite true. Wouldn’t want the visitors to assume you’re having affairs in your private box, do we?”

“Technically speaking, I _am_ hiding an affair. With you.” Lenora said, almost sadly. “I do hate acting like a non-married woman, especially after all you’ve done for this place, for me. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you, you know.”

“Incessant flattery! But do continue.” Dictatious said dramatically. Lenora rolled her eyes and leaned her head back to feel his body behind her.

“Oh, I could, but I’d rather save it for later, once I’m back in our little flat, with the children in bed, and the babysitter gone…”

“And your afterparty?” Dictatious asked, knowing how long she spent organizing it for the crew and guests. Lenora huffed.

“They’ll get drunk before they realize I ditched them.” she smirked. “Besides, those get-togethers aren’t as fun anymore, not without you.”

Dictatious chuckled, the hearty rumbles reverberating on Lenora’s back. “And here I thought you always found me an attention hog at those things.”

“You certainly are, but that’s what made them fun.” Lenora answered with a peck to his chin, and Dictatious purred. They watched the rest of the play before sneaking off, and began an afterparty of their own.


	34. Rescue Team ACTIVATED -- Part I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the death of a dear friend, Lenora and Dictatious learn of a deep family secret that pulls her back into the ocean.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter but I felt like this would be better in a parts. I don't plan for this story line to be long -- no more than two or three parts, but most likely just two. We'll see!
> 
> Not totally ship-focused but I this was a plot I wanted to tie up for a while now, so I figured I may as well do it.

A surprise donation to the theater had been the cherry on top of an already wonderful day. Lenora smiled softly, reading Nancy Domzalski’s name on the check in the envelope. She took out her phone to scan it for her bank when Dictatious shuffled in with a gleeful look about him.

“The lawyers say they have everything they need to make the sale official! By this time tomorrow, we won’t be the owners anymore!”

Lenora cackled with delight as she and her husband hugged tightly. “The sale plus this donation is more than enough to get that boat, too!”

“Boat!” One of the boys shouted from their living room. Otherwise, the only other noise was from their children’s program blasting on the TV. Dictatious began a bouncy waltz with a still giggly Lenora; his joy was infectious.

“Soon, only the open seas await us! Glory and treasure will be our calling!” he decreed, dipping Lenora down low. By that point, the children were waddling over to their parents.

“Pirate treasure?” Sam asked, looking awed. 

“Wanna swim! Swimming!” Jeremiah announced with two fists in the air. Lenora stood back up and smoothed her blouse.

“Soon, my little ones! But first, we have to get ready for dinner with Uncle Toby!”

Dictatious took over child duty for dressing up, just as Lenora received a call from another expected guest, Jim. She answered.

“Jim, dear? Thanks for calling, I was wondering if you and Claire could actually show up tonight!”

“Yeah, we’re here.” he said, somewhat strained. Alarms began to ring in Lenora’s mind at the tone.

“Is something wrong? A dispute about dinner?”

Jim shuddered out a breath, clearly uncomfortable, as he quietly and softly answered, “Nana passed away. Just a few minutes ago.”

Lenora’s eyes widened, covering the receiver on her cell to take a look over at her family. Lorelei was proudly showing off her hair bow to her father, one that she had made by herself just a week ago with Nana herself. Dictatious, a steady friend with the old woman, patted his little girl’s head with approval Lenora removed her hand and continued speaking.

“Oh goodness, I...I don’t know what to say! How’s Toby holding up?”

“Not good. I mean, she was getting old, but it was pretty sudden. The EMTs took her body to the morgue just now.”

“My dearest, is everything alright? You’re smelling nervous.” Dictatious asked from the other end of the flat. 

“In a moment, Max! And I am so sorry Jim. Do you think we could help in any way?”

“He’s with Aaarrrgghh!!! Now. I think anyone more than me and Claire would be too much.”

Lenora nodded. “Of course. But please call us if we can be of any assistance.”

The call ended. Dictatious frowned. 

“What was that about?”

The rest of that conversation had been a blur for Dictatious, who always quietly admired the kind but strong woman who took him in without reservation all those years ago. When the rest of trollkind left him behind in disgust for his treachery, Nancy Domzalski gave him the second chance he did not deserve. She had been a solid bind between him and the rest of Arcadia, even after Lenora came into the equation. 

Human mortality was simply not something Dictatious could process properly; if anything, it only made him all the more appreciative that his wife could now age as a merwoman, and grow old with him. After the funeral, he expressed as much to Lenora, who took it gracefully.

They all sat around speaking of Nancy now. Even Blinky was there, trusting Nomura to handle the New Trollmarket back in the east coast. Toby, as forlorn as he was, was at least surrounded by the new family he forged long ago. 

“Thanks guys. I didn’t think so many people would turn up…”

“For you and Nana? Of course they would.” Claire assured, patting his back. Just as Jim was sharing a word, Lenora spotted a familiar head of hair from the other end of the banquet hall. Her heart froze.

It was her mother.

“Pardon me a moment.” Lenora whispered to Dictatious. He nodded and went back to his own thoughts. 

Edith Janeth was alone, her eyes blankly staring at the buffet; she barely acknowledged Lenora as she casually strolled up.

“Mother.”

“Lenora.”

There was an awkward pause. Lenora used that moment to look over her mother’s face. It had become even more gaunt, and pale, dark circles under her eyes. It was Edith who eventually broke the silence.

“Do you remember when you were little, and we would sometimes get a special Nougat Nummy?”

Lenora breathed in and out, chills going up and down her spine. ‘Getting a special Nougat Nummy’ had been their special code word for ‘I’m in trouble, come get me out of it.’ As strained as their relationship had always been, Lenora never questioned her mother’s willingness to help her when needed. It had gotten her out of a tight spot more than once as she grew up.

“Yes. Why?”

“We should go to the gas station, just around the corner. Get a special Nougat Nummy, for old times sake.”

“S-sure. See you in a--”

But Edith already walked away. Not too fast, not too slow, but it had been abrupt. No one else seemed to notice. Lenora sent a text to Dictatious, and followed after her after waiting for a few minutes. It was not until Lenora walked into the gas station that she realized her father was not anywhere to be seen.

Edith was in the candy aisle, looking at the selection of freshly released Nougat Nummy flavors. Her stare was still blank. She spoke first without any introduction.

“By the way, I have a card for you, in my purse. Would you like it?”

“Of course, mother.” Lenora said. Her heart was in her throat by now. Even without her finfolk insticts, she could tell something was wrong -- terribly wrong. Her hands shook when she was handed the card in question. Edith made a move to grab a candy bar, before sighing and walking away again. 

“I hope you enjoy it.” was all Edith could say. She left without buying anything. Feeling that the letter was critical, she rushed back to the banquet hall to the bathroom, and opened it in a stall.   
It read: _They have Harold and know about me. Follow Mother Moa to find him there._ Attached to it was some of her grey hair.

Whatever sadness befall Dictatious that day fell to the wayside when Lenora told him and the others about the letter. Even Toby sharpened up, if only to distract his grief for another Trollhunting mission; he rightly knew that Nana would have wanted him to keep living life even if something happened to her. 

“But what is Mother Moa? And who is they? Why do they want my father?” Lenora asked. She had two Galadrigals within her presence, both respected scholars, and she wanted answers.

“Mother Moa is the deity of most merfolk. Essentially, she is the spirit and embodiment of the primal oceans. She goes by many names; some humans even venerate aspects of her, such as Mami Wata.” Blinky responded, scratching his chin thoughtfully. “Though, how would your mother know of her? She made it clear that she was not interested in learning about your new heritage.”

Lenora normally would have hurt at the thought; her mother’s rejection after the whelps were laid as eggs was a pain that never did go away. Yet, that look in her eyes, the strangeness of the note...something wasn’t adding up, and that consumed her instead.

“Perhaps this has something to do with you.” Jim put in. “Do you think someone found out about you being a merwoman, and your mom is warning you?”

“But if that’s the case, how does she know about this Mother Moa? Even I did not know of her until now.” Lenora replied, now feeling foolish. Even if she were a follower of human religion, she felt silly for never bothering to study merfolk mythology. 

“Well...she did leave her hair behind.” Claire put in. Aaarrrgghh!!! gave it a sniff and huffed.

“Smell funny. A clue?”

“For what? Scrying?” Lenora asked, looking at Claire now. She shook her head.

“No, not with hair. You can only scry with blood. But...I do remember Merlin making me test different hairs once, when he used to tutor me. Apparently magical creatures have hairs that react differently to arcane fire.”

There was a pregnant pause in the room at that statement. Lenora shook. 

“My mother would have told me if she were not a human.”

“Dearest…” Dictatious said cautiously, a hand laid over hers. Toby sat on the edge of his seat now and spoke up.

“I mean, it’s worth a try. And if your Dad’s in danger…”

There was no arguing with that. Toby, an avid collector of stones still even as a young man, produced a fire stone that, when rubbed, could be warmed enough to emit a flame. Blinky did just that and sat it on a ceramic plate. He then hold out the grey hairs, and the moment they touched the flame, they produced a glittering shower of gold sparks, wafting and swirling as if it were particles in a gust of wind. Lenora sharply inhaled and immediately scowled in displeasure.

“That...that witch! She lied to me! She was always a merwoman! _I was always a merwoman!_ I was never a Changeling! I was always like this! She...she hid this! She lied!”

Dictatious held her carefully. “I know she did. But we can discuss this _later_ , when your father is no longer in danger. Think, Lenora!”

“Your mom might be in trouble too.” Jim put forward. His tone was firm, but far from unkind. “There’s a lot you can figure out, more than any of us may know, but we can’t do that if...if something happens to them. Or you.”

Lenora shuddered and shut her eyes, wiping away a stray tear. “You’re right. You all are. It’s just so much…”

“We can start with Mother Moa. She’s basically the ocean itself, right?” Toby put forward. Aaarrgghh!!! Grunted.

“Deep ocean. Very deep. Old and ancient, will have to go to dark parts.”

“I suppose now is as good a time as any to get in touch with my finfolk instincts again.” Lenora sniffed, straightening herself up, determined. After tucking her little ones in for the night, and giving them lots of stories and bed time kisses, she eventually snuck out with her husband; Blinky offered to stay behind and watch them. Jim must have matured greatly as he reached manhood, as he did not protest at all with his mentor staying behind. If anything, he looked happy to see it that way.

“Don’t worry Blinky, I’ve got it covered. Let’s go.” Jim said, sharing a glance with his aunt. A short drive to the beach later, and they were at the old vacation beach house. Lenora felt a connection there already, as if a friend was waiting for her. 

“What about you all?” Lenora suddenly recalled that the others could not breath underwater, nor did they have any scuba gear. At that, Claire brandished a retractable staff, a silvery purple.

“I just aced all of the conjuration magics. We’re getting a submarine.”

Lenora smirked, kissed her husband, and then ran into the ocean. She heard his determined bark of a roar as she made a jump in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess which 3Below villain is gonna show up next time. >:3c


	35. Late Summer Jantatious

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A series of drabbles go over the domestic bliss of Lenora and Dictatious as their family celebrates the end of summer and beginning of fall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes hello I am That Bitch who shoots pumpkin spice up her veins at the end of August. :)))) What better way to celebrate the coming of the Autumnal equinox than with this rarepair?
> 
> These are just four from a list of prompts from tumblr user @uhmmmsweetie, and not very long. I specifically avoided the Halloween themed one they had, since a separate Halloween chapter is in the making! I am also working on a continuation of the mermaid plotline that will wrap up the main overtheme of this work so that I feel completed haha.
> 
> Happy Seasonal Excitement month everyone

**1\. It’s getting colder at night again. Cuddles.**

Dictatious crawled into their plush bed with a sigh, going under the sheets as he always did at the foot of it, before shuffling towards the headboard. There he plopped down onto his mountain of pillows; all four of his arms reached out to slide his wife right into his chest. There was a small squeal, as his stone skin had been cold still from the chilly late summer air during his walk.

“Max, at least warm up first!” Lenora giggled. Her husband huffed.

“What do you think I am doing? Fleshbags are the best way to seek warmth.” A nose buried itself into her hair, and Dictatious added, “Besides, you smell better than an electric blanket.”

“Mm hm.” Lenora mumbled, slowly going back to sleep. The coldness was seeping away under their comforters, and soon both were toasty and resting into dreams of the coming fall.

\----

**2\. “We need to go to that ice cream place before it closes for the year.”**

People watching turned into people _hearing_ , now that Dictatious was blind; no matter how he did it, however, the troll always had immense fun being nosy. At the moment, he cuddled with his children on the couch, a rerun playing on the TV they were singling along too, as his ear twitched at the sound of Lenora scurrying from one room to the next. Then he heard the jangling of keys.

“Dearest, whatever are you up to? You’re more nervous than Blinky when Jim goes off on his own.”

Lenora skid a little on the wood floors trying to get her flats on. “It’s August.”

“So?”

“We need to go to that ice cream place before it closes for the year.”

A pause, where even the whelps perked their ears in excitement. Dictatious stood up, all four of them rolling off of his frame, and he declared:

_”TO THE ICE CREAM PARLOR!”_

\----

**6\. Taking a late summer trip just to get one in.**

It was a small creek, nothing more, but the water felt amazing regardless. Lenora sighed into the bend, breathing in fresh mountain air and water alike in her finfolk form. The whelps chirped happily just down the stream as they bounced a ball towards one another.

There was a sound of crunching leaves and twigs, before metal clicking of a camping chair rung out, someone settling into it. Lenora hummed lazily and flopped to her other side to face her husband.

“You were right. A camping trip was just what we needed.”

Dictatious snored in response and Lenora could only snicker. Seems he wasn’t the only one who needed the break.

\----

**10\. It’s finally cold enough to drink tea.**

“Momma, tea!”

“Tea tea!”

A chorus of little finwhelps scurried around their mother as she attempted to relax into her tea making routine. Lenora frowned and lightly pushed aside Sam with the side of her leg; he happily and lazily rolled away, giggling as he plopped down further away. It gave her just enough room to pour the hot water into the tea pot and then set it on the tray.

“Now now!” Dictatious rumbled as he walked in. “You charlatans know your manners better than this; give your poor mother some room!”

Jeremiah spun around and pointed at their father. “Tackle daddy!”

A chorus of little finwhelps scurried over to their father, as he attempted to make a mad dash to the living room, cursing in trollish as his wife tried not to laugh at his demise. At least Lenora could never say that their autumn tea time was boring.


End file.
